GX: Dark Queen of Miator
by Count Morningstar
Summary: A sequel to Strawberry Crisis. Jaden returns to the Astraea Island duel academies to find that a horrible dark power has once again fallen over the island, and Tamao may be at the root of it. Full summary inside.
1. Prologue

**Summary:** Almost a full year after Jaden Yuki destroyed the Wicked Gods, he returns to Astraea Island to participate in a special tournament. Upon arrival however, Jaden discovers a disturbing change. The students of St. Miator Duel Academy have become far more militant and ruthless, making the tournament far more intense than Jaden anticipated. The cause of this change is the new student council president of Miator, Tamao Suzumi, who Jaden knew during his first visit to the island. Now in order to once again save not only Astraea Island but also the world, Jaden must do battle with a heartbroken young girl who has been corrupted by a 10,000 year old evil that was thought to be long dead.

**Author's Note:** I know, I know, I'm already working on two other stories. Well, one is almost done and this story is partially written. I started work on it almost right after I finished Strawberry Crisis. It ended up getting dropped though when I decided to start the huge Digimon project I'm in the process of sort of finishing. Anyway, as I said before this story is partially written. I have this prologue and the first eight chapters done, though they probably need editing. So I think I'll slowly add those first chapters and once I get done with the one story I'll give this more attention.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Prologue

Tamao Suzumi sat alone in her room at the Strawberry Dorms on Astraea Island. She was usually alone, but it was more painful than before. Painful because she had lost the girl that she had fallen in love with. That year at St. Miator Duel Academy had started out as the best year that Tamao ever had, for she had finally gotten a roommate. Her name was Nagisa Aoi, and when Tamao saw her, it was love at first sight. Nagisa was the cutest, perhaps most beautiful girl that Tamao had ever seen. She had red hair, reddish-brown eyes, and smooth soft skin. Tamao had become fast friends with Nagisa, and she wanted to become something more, but there was something that got in Tamao's way. That something was another girl named Shizuma Hanazono, and not only was she one of the island's strongest duelists, but also quite beautiful. Shizuma's silver hair, golden eyes, and porcelain skin had captivated Nagisa from the very beginning.

For awhile it seemed like Tamao had no chance at winning Nagisa's heart, but then something happened that seemed to change everything. One awful weekend Shizuma took Nagisa to her private villa on the island, and it seemed like it was all over. Then Nagisa came back from the villa heartbroken, for it seemed that Shizuma was only using Nagisa to replace someone that she had lost. Tamao was there to comfort Nagisa of course, and Tamao thought that she once again had a chance at winning Nagisa's heart. Things got even better for Tamao when the student council president of Miator at that time, Miyuki Rokujo, had entered her and Nagisa in the Etoile Tournament together. Tamao was overjoyed because she thought that by being the tournament together, she and Nagisa could become closer than they had been, that Nagisa would finally love her.

It all turned bad again though. Just before the last duel of the tournament, Nagisa showed up full of anger, and challenged Tamao to a duel, and Tamao had no choice but to accept. During that duel, Nagisa made her true feelings known to Tamao. She more or less told Tamao that she could never love her, that she was just a pathetic lonely girl who thought that she could make Nagisa love her. In the end Tamao realized that Nagisa was right. It was foolish to think that she could somehow make Nagisa fall in love with her, that she could somehow replace Shizuma in Nagisa's heart. That was indeed a foolish girl's fantasy, a delusion.

Tamao blacked out after that duel for some reason. She awoke a week and a half after the tournament, and was horrified to learn about what had happened while she was out. Though Tamao had to admit that she wasn't surprised, she had learned that Shizuma and Nagisa had gotten back together. There were also rumors that Shizuma and Nagisa's love had somehow helped a visiting pro duelist named Jaden Yuki destroy an ancient Egyptian demon, but Tamao didn't really believe that. The point though was that Shizuma and Nagisa were back together, and outside of classes they were practically inseparable. About five days after Jaden Yuki left, Nagisa told Tamao that she had gotten into a study abroad program and that she would be leaving as soon as Shizuma had graduated that year.

Before Nagisa left, she told Tamao that she was sorry about how things turned out, and that she would always think of Tamao as a best friend. That was all that Tamao ever was to Nagisa, and that was all that she would ever be, and never anything more. Tamao was actually a little glad that Nagisa had left. For it hurt too much to have Nagisa share the same room with her and never have Nagisa as her own. In fact if Nagisa hadn't left on that study abroad program, Tamao probably would've dropped out of the academy. The only way that Tamao was going to get over Nagisa and let go of the hopeless notion that they would become more than friends was to get away from Nagisa. There were still several times when Tamao thought about Nagisa, and how their love could never be. The pain had lessened somewhat though, even though Nagisa had left only a few days ago.

What didn't help Tamao though was that it seemed like everyone around her had found love. Even Yaya Nanto, a student from St. Spica Duel Academy that had also fallen in love with someone that would never consider her as more than a best friend, had found a new girl to love. Everybody had someone except for Tamao. Once again Tamao was alone, just like always. I didn't seem fair to her. The blue haired girl's thoughts were interrupted when she heard a knock on her door. Tamao got up from where she was sitting on her bed and opened the door. The person on the other side was Chiyo Tsukidate, a shy Miator student with short navy blue hair that Nagisa and Tamao had befriended earlier that year.

"Oh, hello Chiyo." Tamao greeted with an insincere smile. "What brings you here?"

"Um, hi Tamao." Chiyo greeted back. "I just came to give you this package that came for you."

"Thank you." Tamao said as she took the package that Chiyo handed her. "Do you know who it's from?"

"Not really." Chiyo replied. "How have you been doing since Nagisa left?"

"I'm doing alright." Tamao lied. "If there's nothing else I'd like to be alone right now."

"Oh, okay. I'll see you later then." Chiyo said and turned to leave.

Tamao went back into her room, closing the door firmly behind her. She sat back down on her bed and unwrapped the package that Chiyo gave her. As it turned out, the package was from Tamao's father. Tamao rarely got to see her father most of the time when she was home. The reason for that was because her father was an archeologist and was usually away excavating some ancient ruin. The area of study that Tamao's father was most interested in however was the lost city of Atlantis. He would go all over the world looking for evidence of the lost city; it was an obsession of his.

As a result of his search, Tamao's father had become somewhat of an authority on the fabled lost city. Because of this, the U.S. Navy had asked her father to investigate a newly discovered underwater ruin off the coast of Florida. That investigation went on for about a decade, and Tamao rarely saw or heard from her father at all. So she was greatly surprised to receive a package from him. The first item that Tamao found in the package was a letter from her father.

_'My dearest daughter, I know that I have not been in your life much these past ten years, and for that I am profoundly sorry. I only wish that I could tell you the reason why I have been away from you for so long, but due to certain government restrictions I cannot say much. All I can tell you is that I have been living my dream. The discoveries that I have made have been beyond my wildest imagination. Even though it most likely goes against the restrictions I am under, as well as the principles of my profession, I wish to share with you some of the treasures that I have found on the deep ocean floor. One of the artifacts I think you will find to be an interesting puzzle. The other is simply something that I think a beautiful girl like you deserves. I know that these two items don't make up for my long absence, but I hope that they at least begin to say how sorry I am for not being around to see you grow up. ~ Your loving father.'_

Tamao put the letter aside and looked at the two items that her father had sent her. The first item appeared to be part of some sort of stone mural that depicted a yellow reptilian eye of some kind. Tamao assumed that the object was the interesting puzzle that her father was referring to. Tamao did enjoy puzzles at times, though she couldn't begin to figure out how to solve the puzzle from her father at the moment. The second item in the package was a silver ring with a finely cut green stone on the top. The ring seemed to be too big to fit on Tamao's hand, but as she looked at it, the stone on the ring flashed and she was amazed to see that it seemed to shrink down to a perfect fit.

Against her better judgment, Tamao slipped the ring onto her left ring finger. As soon as she put the ring on, a brilliant green light filled the room. When the light finally faded, Tamao was amazed to see a Duel Monsters card floating in front of her. It was a Spell card that had some sort of green circle with a unicursal hexagram in the center and a line of some sort of ancient text repeating around the edge as the illustration. It seemed to Tamao to be some sort of mystic symbol. Tamao read the name of the card, "The Seal of Orichalcos." Tamao took the card with her right hand, and the moment she touched it she felt some sort of strange power running through her. Tamao's eyes changed from blue to a light green. At that point Tamao started to once again reflect on how unfair the world seemed to be. About how she was always alone while others had someone to love, and it occurred to Tamao that this "gift" from her father was just what she needed to set the world right.

* * *

**Author's Note:** This first chapter is already up, so feel free to take a look. And prepare to see Tamao as you have never seen her before.

Also, please review and let me know what you think.


	2. Return To Astraea Island

**Author's Note:** I apologize in advance for the length of this chapter.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 1: Return to Astraea Island

Jaden Yuki stood out on the deck of a boat out on the open ocean, watching the passing waves. As he looked at the waves, he thought about the time that he stayed on Astraea Island, the home of three elite all girl duel academies, Miator, Spica, and Lilum. The creator of Duel Monsters, Maximillion Pegasus, had brought Jaden to the island under the pretence of showing the students what it was like to face a real pro duelist. Pegasus's real purpose however was to have Jaden look for a set of three dangerous and very powerful cards called the Wicked Gods. During that time, Jaden made many friends on the island, and also helped somewhat to bring together two of the students romantically. It had almost been a year since that time on Astraea Island, and Jaden would soon be returning.

The large boat that Jaden was on was taking him and a few other young pro duelists to the island for a Special Tournament known as the Astraea Star Cup, and it was by special invitation only that duelists could participate. Jaden was rather surprised that his own invitation reached him since he had become somewhat of a wanderer, but somehow it did, and Jaden gladly accepted it. For it was an opportunity for him to see some of his old friends on the island again. As Jaden looked out over the ocean, his thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of Winged Kuriboh, one of his most faithful Duel Monster spirits. The winged fur ball suddenly took off and Jaden followed him.

It didn't take long for Jaden to find out what Winged Kuriboh was trying to tell him. The winged fur ball had sensed another Duel Monster spirit, one that Winged Kuriboh already knew, as did Jaden. The creature in question was a small four legged mammal with two pairs of big ears, lavender fur, ruby red eyes, and a ruby red sphere on the end of its long tail. Winged Kuriboh immediately began wrestling with the creature, which Jaden knew to be Crystal Beast Ruby Carbuncle. There was only one person in the entire world that had that card.

"Well isn't this a surprise?" a voice suddenly asked. Jaden looked and saw that it was from a young man about Jaden's age with blue-green hair and eyes and wearing a long sleeved white shirt, a blue vest, and black pants. A duel disk was on his left arm. Jaden immediately recognized the person as his old friend, Jessie Anderson, the wielder of the Crystal Beasts.

"Jessie!" Jaden exclaimed as he ran over to his old friend. Like Jaden, Jessie could see and hear Duel Monster spirits, and they also shared a similar attitude toward dueling. So to Jaden, Jessie was sort of like the twin brother that he never had. Even though they looked nothing alike. "How are you man?"

"Just great. And you?" Jessie asked.

"Pretty good." Jaden answered. "So I guess you're in this tournament too, huh?"

"Yeah, though I didn't know that you'd be in it too." Jessie replied.

"Well hello Jessie!" said Yubel, Jaden's Duel Monster partner, as she suddenly appeared. "It's been so long since we last saw each other. How've you been?"

"Uh, hi Yubel." Jessie said as he was taken aback by Yubel's sudden appearance. Jessie knew that Yubel was no longer the deranged and twisted creature that had once possessed him, but the Duel Monster's appearance had still brought back unpleasant memories. "I'm doing just fine. So Jaden, have you been to Astraea Island before?"

"One time." Jaden answered. "I was there doing some work for Maximillion Pegasus. It's kind of a long story."

"Well, it's still a long boat ride." Jessie replied.

"Is this a private party, or can anybody join in?" a new voice asked.

Jaden and Jessie saw that it was a young man around their age with spiked brown hair, and wearing an orange hooded sweatshirt, black jeans, and red tennis shoes. A duel disk was on his left arm.

"Who are you?" Jaden asked in a friendly tone.

"The name's Jason Morgan," the young man answered, "but everybody calls me Striker. Who're you guys?"

"I'm Jaden Yuki, and this is Jessie Anderson." Jaden introduced.

"Wow, I've heard of you guys!" Striker exclaimed. "I bet this isn't your first big tournament."

"Not really." Jessie answered. "Is it yours?"

"This'll be the first tournament I've been in since I graduated from my old academy." Striker answered.

"Wow, what duel academy did you go to?" Jaden asked.

"West Road Academy in North America." Striker answered. "It's not a very big academy, but a nice one."

"So are you excited about this tournament?" Jessie asked.

"You bet! It's gonna be a blast facing all these pro duelists!" Striker answered. "Plus I bet these students on this island we're going to are probably pretty strong too. I can't wait!"

"They are strong. Believe me." Jaden replied, glad to see someone else who seemed to share his attitude towards dueling.

"Well, well. If it isn't my old rival, Striker Morgan." A voice with a slight accent suddenly said.

Jaden and the others turned to see another young man with blond hair wearing sunglasses, a white jacket with rolled up sleeves over a pink shirt, a black necktie, blue jeans, and white tennis shoes.

"Clive Winston. I should've known that you'd be here." Striker said to the newcomer.

"You know this guy Striker?" Jaden asked.

"Clive is an old friend and rival of mine from the Atlantic Duel Academy in the UK." Striker answered. "Our academies have faced each other in tournaments a few times, and every time it'd be the two of us in the final round."

"And you'd win every time too." Clive added. "So who're your new mates Striker?"

"Well the guy with the bluish green hair is Jessie Anderson, the Crystal Beast user," Striker introduced, "and the brown haired guy is Jaden Yuki."

"As in Jaden Yuki the Fusion Master?" Clive asked in surprise as he took off his shades to get a better look at Jaden.

"Um, I've never heard myself called that before, but yeah." Jaden replied.

"Wow, I thought you were a myth!" Clive exclaimed. "I mean I've heard stories about you mate! Wow, it's my lucky day! I get to meet a living myth and get to go to an island with cute girls! Though some of them would be a little young for me, but the upper class students are some real possibilities!"

"Here we go again." Striker sighed. "Clive is a bit of a flirt. If there's one thing he likes more than dueling, it's the ladies."

"Um, I don't think you're going to have much luck getting a date from the students on the island." Jaden told Clive.

Jaden knew that for some reason, most if not all of the students on Astraea Island were geared towards other girls when it came to romantic companionship. He didn't wonder about the reason why, for it wasn't his business anyway. All Jaden knew was that any of Clive's attempts to attract the ladies of Astraea Island would be as useless as trying to put out a fire with gasoline.

"Oh, you haven't seen me in action yet." Clive said to Jaden in a confident and very smug tone.

"Trust me, these girl really aren't going to be interested in you." Jaden replied.

"Oh really, you a betting man Jaden Yuki?" Clive asked.

"Let the boy find out for himself." Yubel cut in with a wry expression. "It could be a learning experience for him. Not to mention a laugh riot for me."

"Well look at what we have here." A gruff voice rudely cut it. "I can't believe they let all this trash onto the boat."

The person who interrupted was a rather large and burly young man with black hair wearing a white tank top and green pants.

"Who the heck are you?" Jaden asked the stranger.

"That's Dirk Peters, a real low life of a duelist." Striker answered.

"How the heck did you get into this tournament Morgan?" Dirk asked Striker.

"I was invited, like everyone else." Striker answered. "Though I'm completely shocked that you got invited to this thing."

"Hmph, well if you got invited to this thing, than the competition must be really soft!" Dirk said to Striker with an arrogant smirk. "Not that I expected much since the rest of the players in this tournament are a bunch of weak little girls!"

"Don't insult the students of Astraea Island!" Jaden cut in. "They're powerful duelists!"

"You're probably saying that because one of those creampuff girls beat you once." Dirk laughed. "Who are you anyway?"

"That's Jaden Yuki, the Fusion Master!" Clive answered. "And he could duel you into the ground Peters!"

"Well see about that in the tournament!" Dirk replied. "In the meantime, all of you losers better stay out of my way!"

With that, Dirk turned and left. The other four duelists glared at him from behind his back.

"One thing's for sure, before this tournament is over, one of us is gonna have to clobber that guy." Jaden said. His companions nodded.

* * *

Meanwhile, back on Astraea Island, the students of the three student councils and the two Etoile were having their weekly meeting in the student council room of Spica. It had become tradition to hold these meetings in the student council room of the school that the Etoile were from, and since the current Etoile, Hikari Konohana and Amane Ohtori were from Spica, the meetings were held there. Hikari and Amane sat at the table in two throne-like chairs. Sitting right across from them was Chikaru Minamoto, the raven-haired president of Lilum. To the left on Hikari's side of the table was Shion Tomori, the blond haired president of Spica, and to the right on Amane's side sat Tamao Suzumi, the blue haired president of Miator. The meeting was wrapping up, and they had one piece of business to tend to.

"Okay, the last order of business is the setup for the final matches of the Astraea Star Cup tournament." Chikaru announced. "We still have to decide where they will be held."

"I vote that the finals be held at the Spica stadium." Shoin announced.

"I second that vote." Chikaru agreed.

"I unfortunately do not agree." Tamao said with a calm smile that hid sinister motives. "I have nothing against the Spica stadium, but it seems to me to be a little overused. It seems that since the last Etoile Tournament, the stadium has been used for almost every major dueling event on the island, as if Spica is bragging about the current Etoile being from their academy."

"I resent that accusation!" Shion shouted as she banged the table with her fists.

"It's not an accusation, but merely an observation." Tamao replied, retaining her calm smile. "You have to admit that the repeated use of that stadium does give some that impression president Shion."

"And I suppose that you want the finals to be held in Miator's stadium?" Shion asked.

"That would be preferable." Tamao replied.

This was not the first time that this type of argument occurred between the presidents of Miator and Spica. Several similar arguments had occurred in past meetings. It seemed though that Tamao was far better at winning these arguments than her predecessor, Miyuki Rokujo. Hikari, Amane, and Chikaru all sighed in unison as if to say: "here we go again."

"I can't believe you!" Shion exclaimed as she suddenly stood up from her chair. "You accuse Spica of bragging just so you can get the finals to be held in Miator's stadium!"

"I'm only trying to help your academy to protect its image." Tamao replied calmly as she started to stroke the green stoned ring on her left middle finger.

"You are so transparent!" Shion shouted. "Don't pretend to say that you're suggesting this for Spica's benefit!"

"Enough!" Amane interrupted after Hikari whispered something to her. "We don't have time to quibble over something like this. The visiting duelists will be here soon. Now Hikari has just suggested a reasonable compromise. Why don't we hold the finals in Lilum's stadium? That way no one can accuse Spica of bragging, and Spica can feel satisfied that Miator isn't just trying to steal the finals from them."

"That seems reasonable to me." Chikaru agreed.

"That seems like a good idea to me too." Shion sighed as she sat back down in her chair.

"It does seem to be a reasonable compromise Etoile Amane," Tamao said calmly, "but I'm afraid that it won't be possible. I've already informed the head mistress that the finals will be held in Miator's stadium."

"YOU DID WHAT?" Shion shouted as she stood back up. "HOW DARE YOU GO BEHIND OUR BACKS LIKE THAT?"

"I agree! That was a violation of our protocols!" Chikaru added.

"I was merely taking initiative." Tamao calmly replied. "It is as Amane pointed out, we have little time to debate details like this with the visiting duelists coming soon. Although if I had thought of holding the finals in Lilum's stadium, I would've told the head mistress that we had come to that agreement."

"YOU LYING LITTLE…!" Shion began to shout.

"Okay! It seems our hands our now tied." Amane interrupted. "The finals will have to be held in Miator's stadium. I think we can call this meeting adjourned."

"No argument here." Chikaru agreed with a sigh.

With that, Hikari and Amane walked out of the room together. Tamao gave Shion and Chikaru one last innocent smile before leaving. Shion sat back down in her chair with a sigh.

"That girl is going to be the death of me!" Shion exclaimed as she began rubbing her temples. "Tamao is a thousand times worse than Miyuki ever was!"

Chikaru got up, walked over to Shion, and placed a hand on her friend's left shoulder.

"Maybe you should call it an early day and get some rest." Chikaru suggested to Shion.

"Thanks Chikaru, but I'll be alright." Shion replied with a reassuring smile. "Besides, I still have a lot of work that needs to be done today."

"You shouldn't push yourself." Chikaru said with a worried look. "You're far too young to get any grey hairs."

"…I guess I can get Kaname and Momomi to do some of the work I have left today." Shion relented, and with that, the two student council presidents left the room.

* * *

A few hours later, the boat carrying Jaden and the other pro duelists had finally arrived at the island. Including Jaden, Jessie, Clive, and Striker, the boat was carrying at least fifty to sixty pro duelists. All of them were young, and many of them had recently graduated from a duel academy of some sort. The duelists were all led from the dock to a clearing out in front of the church at the center of the island. Jaden remembered the church as the one where the Spica School Choir would usually perform. Awaiting the duelists outside of the church was the kindly old woman who was the head mistress of all three academies on the island, who's name Jaden could not remember. Waiting next to the head mistress was a girl with long curly blond hair and a blue haired tomboy who could easily be mistaken as a young man from a fair distance. Jaden immediately recognized the duo as Hikari and Amane, the Etoile of Astraea Island. Once all of the duelists had assembled, the head mistress began to speak.

"Welcome visiting duelists." The head mistress began. "It is an honor to have you all here. You have all been invited to this tournament because of your young age and skill. For many of you, this tournament will be the first test of your strength and skills as pro duelists. It will also be a test for many of the students here on the island participating as well. It is my sincerest hope that this tournament will be a learning experience for all that are participating.

"The tournament itself will begin tomorrow, but tonight we shall have a special banquet in honor of your arrival. First though, we shall show all of you to the accommodations that have been set up for all of you. Before that however, will Jaden Yuki, Jessie Anderson, Clive Winston, and Jason Morgan please step forward?"

The four stepped forward as requested, wondering why they were singled out.

"As the four of you are the top ranked duelists among those who were invited, special accommodations have been prepared for you." The head mistress continued. "You will also be sitting at the table of our island's two Etoile, Hikari Konohana and Amane Ohtori during tonight's banquet. On that note, our two Etoile shall lead you to where you will be staying during the tournament, while I shall lead the rest of the duelists to where they shall be staying. I look forward to seeing you all tonight at the banquet."

With that, Jaden, Jessie, Clive, and Striker went off with Hikari and Amane, while the head mistress led the rest of the duelists to where they would be staying during the tournament. Jaden noticed Dirk glaring at them as they left.

"It's been awhile, hasn't it Jaden?" Amane asked as they were walking.

"Yeah, it sure has." Jaden replied. "It's great seeing you guys again."

"Same here." Hikari responded.

"And it is lovely meeting a lovely young girl such as yourself." Clive said to Hikari in a suave manner. "Maybe after this whole banquet thing is over you and I could get together a little dinner of our own."

"Hikari and I will be going straight to our room after the banquet." Amane cut in, giving Clive a death glare at the same time.

"Looks like you've been shot down again Clive." Striker whispered.

"I'll win one of them over yet Striker, just you wait." Clive whispered back with a smug expression.

"I highly doubt that." Jaden cut in.

There was little conversation after that point. After a short walk, Hikari and Amane led the four visiting duelists to a small guesthouse out behind the head mistress's mansion, which Jaden had not noticed was there during his first visit. The guesthouse was fairly small compared to the mansion. It was one floor, well furnished, and had four separate rooms for each of the visiting duelists.

"Okay, the banquet tonight is at 7:00." Amane said as Jaden and his three companions checked out where they would be staying. "Hikari and I will be back to pick you guys up then. Oh, and Jaden and Jessie, be sure to bring your duel disks and decks."

With that, the Etoile duo left, and the four duelists began to settle in.

* * *

About fifteen minutes before the banquet, Jaden, Jessie, and Striker all emerged from their rooms wearing their usual attire. Clive on the other hand emerged wearing a fancy black tuxedo, though he still had his sunglasses on.

"Well chaps, how do I look?" Clive asked as he displayed his outfit.

"You look nice Clive, but I think you might be a little overdressed." Jaden answered. "Jessie, Striker, and I are all wearing the same thing that we normally wear, and it's not like any of the other duelists who came here brought outfits like that."

"That's merely because they weren't prepared like I was." Clive replied.

"Well I guess you can take pride in being the only penguin on the island." Striker said with a touch of sarcasm. "And would it kill you to take off your sunglasses? The sun has pretty much set."

"You know I can't take off these shades Striker. They're part of my image." Clive replied, causing Striker to roll his eyes.

There was a knock on the outside door, and after Jaden gave whomever it was the signal to come in, Hikari and Amane entered. Amane was wearing a white tuxedo with a blue sash, while Hikari was wearing an elegant white dress with a red sash. The two looked every bit like a prince and princess.

"You guys ready to go?" Amane asked. The four duelists nodded. "Okay, follow us."

As they were leaving, Clive pulled Jaden over to ask him something.

"Hey Fusion Master, are those two girls… a couple?" Clive asked in a whisper.

"They are, actually." Jaden whispered back.

"Well no wonder my natural charms didn't work on either of them earlier." Clive replied.

"Your 'natural charms' don't work on girls who do like guys." Striker whispered after overhearing the conversation. "Now let's get going."

Hikari and Amane led the four to a large field that had been set up for an outdoor banquet. Lights were strung from polls and tables and chairs were set up in various spots. Already there were visiting duelists and Astraea Island students sitting at most of them. In the middle of this field of table and chairs was a circular clearing wide enough for a few people to duel in. The Etoile duo led Jaden and the others to a rectangular table with six chairs. The middle two chairs looked more like thrones and regular chairs. Hikari sat in the left throne while Amane sat in the right. Jaden and Jessie sat in the two chairs next to Amane, while Clive and Striker sat in the two chairs next to Hikari.

From where Jaden was sitting, he could get a good look at just about were everyone was. At a round table off to his left sat the head mistress and a few of the teachers from the three academies. Off to his right, Jaden could see that there similar tables were set up for the student councils of all three academies. The first one he noticed was the one that Chikaru Minamoto, Lilum's student council president. Sitting with Chikaru was an orange haired girl with pigtails who Jaden remembered as Kizuna Hyuga, a green haired girl with glasses, who Jaden knew as Remon Natsume, and a young blond girl with a teddy bear, who Jaden fondly remembered as Kagome Byakudan. The four girls waved at Jaden, to which Jaden responded with a wave of his own.

Next to Chikaru's table was the table for the Spica student council. There were only three girls at that one. One was a girl with short black hair and a rather masculine appearance. Another was a girl with medium length brown hair. Both girls wore a scowl on their faces, as if they were not happy to be there. Jaden remembered those two as Kaname Kenjo and Momomi Kiyashiki. Jaden did not have fond memories of those two, as they tried a few times to try and get between Hikari and Amane and prevent them from becoming Etoile. Shion was sitting in between Kaname and Momomi, and Jaden noticed that the blond had a tired expression on her face.

"Is Shion alright?" Jaden asked Amane.

"Running the student council has really been wearing her out." Amane answered in a worried tone. "She thought it would be easier when Hikari and I became Etoile, but it's actually become a much harder job than before."

"Why's that?" Jaden asked.

"It's mostly due to Miator's student council, and their new president." Amane answered. "Ever since Tamao became student council president, things have been different. Miator has changed. It's like the students there are more ruthless. They'll challenge anybody who looks at them funny. What's more is that when Tamao became president, she immediately disbanded the old student council and formed a completely new one from students that she handpicked herself. After that they disbanded most of Miator's old clubs, replacing them with clubs that focus on aggressive dueling tactics, self-defense, and even this weird science club."

Jaden looked over at the table where the Miator student council members were to sit and saw that it was vacant. As if on cue however, Tamao and her student council showed up, causing many of the students, and a few of the teachers and visiting duelists to go silent and look on with quiet awe. There were four of them, not counting Tamao, with two walking in front and two behind. One of the two girls in front had long dark-brown hair, dark-blue eyes, and a cold expression on her face. The other had raven-black hair that was tied back in a ponytail, and cold, light-blue eyes. As for the two in back, one had short purple hair and dark-green eyes. The other had dark-green hair that was a bit longer than the purple haired girl's, and wore glasses over her hazel eyes.

The five members of Miator's student council sat down at their table, with the two girls that were walking in front sitting on Tamao's left, and the two girls from behind sitting on her right. Jaden noticed that there was something very different about Tamao. He couldn't quite place what it was, but as Jaden looked at Tamao, he noticed that her eyes seemed to be a different color. Before her eyes were the same blue color as her hair, but they had changed to a light green. Tamao noticed Jaden looking at her and gave him a startled expression, as if she wasn't expecting to see Jaden there. That expression soon changed to a warm smile however, but Jaden found something unsettling about it.

"Blimey, those girls look intense!" Clive exclaimed quietly.

"Are those four girls with Tamao the new student council?" Jaden asked.

"Yeah, and there are some bad rumors about them." Amane answered. "All four of them are transfer students. The one with the purple hair is Mika Yamato. I haven't seen her in action, but I've heard that she's a very aggressive and merciless duelist. The one in the glasses is Hiyori Sonoda. She's the one who started Miator's science club, and they say that she's conducting some kind of weird experiments for Tamao. The one with the black hair is Tomoyo Mikage. They say that she never says a word, except when she's dueling. The final member of the group is an exchange student from England named Jane Hawthorn. Among the four, they say that she's the strongest. All four of them are known by everyone as the Four Witches of Miator."

As soon as Tamao and her Four Witches sat down, the food was served. After it seemed that everyone had finished her meal, the head mistress stood up and gently but loudly tapped the side of her glass, signaling that she was about to speak.

"Assembled students and visiting duelists," the head mistress began, "it is an honor to have you all here for this event. The Astraea Star Cup tournament does not begin until tomorrow, but tonight, we have arranged a special event. Our two Etoile, Hikari Konohana and Amane Ohtori, shall face two of our visiting duelists, Jessie Anderson and Jaden Yuki, in a special exhibition duel, which will be played using the rules applied during the previous Etoile Tournament. Meaning that both teams will share an amount of 4000 life points, and one player cannot be attacked directly while his or her partner has a monster on the field. Now, will our four duelists please move to the clearing that has been prepared for this event?"

Jaden and Jessie grabbed their duel disks, which they had brought with them and placed under their chairs during dinner, and headed out to the field with Hikari and Amane.

"I wish I was going out there to face those two girls." Striker commented.

"Same here Striker, but at least we'll both get to see the great Fusion Master in action." Clive replied.

Once the four duelists were in position, the head mistress signaled the duel to begin. Jessie had the first turn.

"First I summon Crystal Beast Emerald Tortoise in Defense Mode!" Jessie announced. Appearing on the field in front of Jessie was a large green tortoise with emerald gemstones adorning its shell. The creature's head and arms were retracted. "Now I'll set one card on the field and end my turn!"

"First I summon Shining Angel in Defense Mode!" Hikari announced after drawing her card. A male angel with gold wings and hair appeared on the field in front of Hikari. "Now I set two cards on the field and end my turn!"

"I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart in Defense Mode!" Jaden announced as his faithful jungle warrior appeared on the field. "Next I'll lay down a facedown and end my turn!"

"I summon Freed the Brave Wanderer in Attack Mode!" Amane announced.

An armored warrior with long blond hair and a green cape appeared on Amane's side of the field.

"Freed attack Wildheart!" Amane commanded. "Brave Sword Attack!"

The armored warrior drew his sword and slashed Wildheart in half.

"I activate my Trap, Hero Signal!" Jaden announced. "Because Wildheart was destroyed, I can Special Summon Elemental Hero Burstinatrix from my deck!"

Appearing on Jaden's part of the field was a female warrior with dark grey hair, a gold helmet, and a red and light grey bodysuit.

"I was hoping for that!" Hikari smirked. "I activate my facedown Spell card, Demise of the Land! When my opponent Special Summons a monster, I can activate a Field Spell from my deck! So I activate The Sanctuary in the Sky!"

In a flash the surrounding area changed into an ancient Roman style temple that was floating in the sky.

"I set one card and end my turn!" Amane announced. It was Jessie's turn next.

"First I summon Crystal Beast Topaz Tiger in Attack Mode!" Jessie announced.

A white tiger with a bladed horn on its forehead appeared on the field.

"Topaz Tiger, attack Freed!" Jessie commanded. "Topaz Incisor Shred!"

"I activate my Trap, Draining Shield!" Hikari announced as the tiger lunged at Freed. "Now your attack is negated and Amane and I gain life points equal to your Tiger's ATK, which at the moment is 2000!"

A silver shield appeared on Freed's arm, which he raised to block the pouncing tiger.

"I'll set one card and end my turn!" Jessie announced.

Hikari drew her next card. Jaden hoped that Hikari would choose attack Jessie's Topaz Tiger instead of his Burstinatrix. Burstinatrix had weaker ATK, but Topaz Tiger had a more dangerous effect. It gained 400 ATK whenever it attacked an enemy monster.

"First I activate Field Barrier!" Hikari announced. "Now my Field Spell can't be destroyed or replaced with another one. Next I tribute Shinning Angel to summon Airknight Parshath!"

The blond angel shattered, and in his place appeared a centaur-like angel wearing blue and gold armor.

"Parshath, attack Topaz Tiger!" Hikari commanded. "Avenging Blade!"

Parshath charged forward and slashed the tiger in half with his sword. The strike reduced Jessie and Jaden's life points from 4000 to 3700.

"You may have destroyed Topaz Tiger, but he stays on the field as a Continuous Spell card!" Jessie announced. A large uncut yellow gemstone appeared on his part of the field.

"Fine, but I get to draw another card since Parshath inflicted battle damage!" Hikari announced. "I end my turn!"

"You should've attacked Burstinatrix when you had the chance!" Jaden said with a smirk as he drew his next card. "First I activate Polymerization and fuse Bustinatrix with Elemental Hero Avian in my hand to summon Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!"

A winged warrior in a green furred costume momentarily appeared on the field before merging with Burstinatrix into a muscular green warrior with one white wing and a red dragon headed arm.

"Next I activate Miracle Fusion and combine Avian and Burstinatrix in the Graveyard to summon Elemental Hero Nova Master!" Jaden announced.

In a burst of flames appeared a warrior in red, orange, yellow, and black armor, with a flowing red cape.

"Wow, he used the same pair of monsters to bring out two different Fusions!" Striker exclaimed from the sidelines.

"That's why they call Jaden Yuki the Fusion Master." Clive replied.

Jaden thought that things were looking up. Flame Wingman had 2100 ATK and could also inflict a huge amount of damage, while Nova Master had 2600 ATK. Both of Jaden's monsters could easily take out Freed and Parshath.

"Flame Wingman, attack Freed!" Jaden commanded. "Flame Shoot!"

Flame Wingman shot a fireball from his dragonhead arm.

"Not so Fast! I activate my Trap, Negate Attack!" Amane announced. "This stops you from attacking this turn!"

Flame Wingman's fireball was suddenly sucked into a vortex that briefly appeared in front of Freed.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced. Amane drew her next card.

"First I activate Graceful Charity!" Amane announced. "I draw three more cards and discard two! Next I activate Freed's effect, and remove the two Light monsters I discarded to the Graveyard to destroy Nova Master!"

Nova Master exploded in a flash of white light.

"Now I equip Freed with Black Pendant, increasing his ATK from 1700 to 2200!" Amane announced. A necklace with a dark purple gemstone appeared around Freed's neck. "Freed, attack Flame Wingman! Brave Sword Attack!"

Freed drew his sword once again and slashed Flame Wingman in half. The strike reduced Jessie and Jaden's life points from 3700 to 3600.

"Blimey, that Amane turned things around in an instant!" Clive exclaimed.

"I've heard about Amane and Hikari before." Striker replied. "Alone they're strong duelists, but together they're practically unstoppable. They call them the prince and princess of Spica, and it looks like those titles are given for good reason."

"I end my turn!" Amane announced. Jessie drew his next card.

"First I summon Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus in Attack Mode!" Jessie announced. A white Pegasus with a sapphire horn and sapphire gemstones in the wings appeared on the field. "When Sapphire Pegasus is summoned, I can add a Crystal Beast from my hand, deck, or Graveyard to my Spell/Trap Zone! So I bring out from my deck, Crystal Beast Amber Mammoth!"

A large uncut amber gemstone appeared on the field.

"Next I activate Crystal Beacon!" Jessie announced. "Since I have two Crystal Beasts in my Spell/Trap Zones, I can summon another Crystal Beast from my deck! So I summon Crystal Beast Amethyst Cat!"

Appearing on the field was a large pink cat with a gold collar set with an amethyst gem.

"Now I activate Crystal Promise and summon Topaz Tiger from my Spell/Trap Zone!" Jessie announced.

The uncut topaz gemstone transformed back into Topaz Tiger.

"Topaz Tiger, attack Parshath!" Jessie commanded. "Topaz Incisor Shred!"

The tiger pounced on Parshath and tore the angelic centaur to pieces.

"Now for Amethyst Cat, which can attack my opponents directly!" Jessie announced. "Amethyst Cat, attack Hikari with Amethyst Power Pounce!"

The pink cat leapt at Hikari, and knocked her back a little. The attack reduced Amane and Hikari's life points from 6000 to 5400.

"I end my turn!" Jessie announced. Hikari drew her next card.

"First I play Soul Absorption!" Hikari announced. "Next I remove Shining Angel and Parshath from my Graveyard to summon Soul of Purity and Light!"

Appearing on the field was a young man with a female angel behind him. At the same time, two balls of golden light fluttered around the field for a moment before hitting Hikari and Amane, increasing their life points to 6400.

"Soul of Purity and Light, attack Amethyst Cat!" Hikari commanded. "Pure Soul Ray!"

The angel behind the young man rose up and fired a beam of white light at Amethyst Cat. The cat transformed into an uncut amethyst gemstone. The attack had reduced Jessie and Jaden's life points to 2800.

"I end my turn!" Hikari announced. Jaden drew his next card and saw that there wasn't much he could do.

"First I summon Elemental Hero Clayman in Defense Mode!" Jaden announced. A warrior in dark grey stone armor and a red mask appeared on the field in a crouched position. "Next I'll lay down a facedown and end my turn!"

"First I summon Blade Knight in Attack Mode!" Amane announced after drawing her card. A knight in shinning silver armor appeared on the field. "Now because I control two light attribute monsters I can Special Summon from my hand the Guardian of Order!"

An almost mechanical looking warrior in white and gold armor descended from the sky onto the field.

"Whoa, Amane just summoned a monster with 2500 ATK without sacrificing anything!" Clive exclaimed. "This duel might be over."

"Maybe not." Striker replied. "Jaden might be able to block Amane's next attack if I'm right about what his facedown card is."

"Guardian of Order, attack Topaz Tiger!" Amane commanded. "Sanction of Light!"

The celestial warrior fired a large orb of golden light at Topaz Tiger.

"I activate my Trap, Negate Attack!" Jaden announced.

A vortex appeared in front of Topaz Tiger just in time to suck in the Guardian of Order's attack.

"I end my turn!" Amane announced. Jessie drew his next card.

"I switch Sapphire Pegasus and Topaz Tiger to Defense Mode and end my turn!" Jessie announced. Hikari's turn came.

"I tribute Soul of Purity and Light to summon The Agent of Judgment-Saturn!" Hikari announced. In place of Soul of Purity and Light appeared an angel with purple skin and dark purple wings. "Now, because The Sanctuary in the Sky is on the field, I can tribute Saturn to inflict damage equal to the difference between our life points!"

Saturn raised his arms forward and exploded into a nova of white light. When the light cleared however, all the cards were still on the field and a pillar of rainbow light momentarily surrounded Jessie and Jaden.

"What the… how?" a confused Hikari asked.

"When you activated Saturn's effect, I discarded Crystal Beast Ruby Carbuncle from my hand and activated the Trap card I set on my first turn, Rainbow Life." Jessie explained. "It negated the damage from Saturn and increased our life points by an equal amount."

"I set one card and end my turn!" Hikari announced sounding a little discouraged. Jaden drew his next card.

"I discard Elemental Hero Neos to activate Super Polymerization!" Jaden announced. "I fuse Clayman with Guardian of Order to summon Elemental Hero The Shining!"

"A card that can fuse his own monsters with his opponent's?" Striker asked in surprise.

"The legends are true!" Clive exclaimed with a look of awe.

A large vortex appeared in the sky above the battlefield and sucked in Clayman and the Guardian of order. The vortex vanished with a flash of light, and from the sky emerged a new warrior. One who wore a white bodysuit with golden blade-like ornaments protruding from his lower back and curved upward. The warrior had a single red gem-like eye.

"The Shining gains 300 ATK for all of my removed from play Heroes, making his ATK 3200!" Jaden explained. "Shinning, attack Freed with Optical Storm!"

The Shining fired a beam of white light from his eye, which vaporized Freed and reduced Hikari and Amane's life points to 5400. At that moment, the gem on Freed's necklace shattered and purple lightning hit both Jaden and Jessie, reducing their life points to 5900.

"When Black Pendant is destroyed, it inflicts 500 points of damage to the opponent!" Amane explained.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced. Amane drew her next card.

"First I summon Warrior of Zera in Attack Mode!" Amane announced. A tan muscular warrior wearing a red scarf, blue pants, and a green helmet with red horns appeared on the field. "Now because The Sanctuary in the Sky is on the field, I can evolve Zera into Archlord Zerato!"

White lights from the sanctuary bombarded Zera, transforming him into an angelic being with white-feathered wings and glowing white skin. His scarf transformed into a long sash, which covered his face. Jaden had seen this monster before. Zerato was Amane and Hikari's strongest card.

"Now I activate Zerato's effect and discard a Light monster from my hand to destroy all monsters on my opponent's side of the field!" Amane announced.

Zerato raised his saber and from it fired a beam of white light that destroyed all of Jessie and Jaden's monsters. Sapphire Pegasus and Topaz Tiger turned into uncut gemstones and went into Jessie's two remaining Spell/Trap Zones.

"When The Shining is destroyed, I get to add two of my removed Heroes back to my hand!" Jaden announced.

"Fine by me. Blade Knight, attack Jaden and Jessie directly!" Amane commanded. "Royal Saber!"

The silver knight charged forward and slashed both duelists with his blade. The attack reduced Jaden and Jessie's life points to 4300.

"Zerato, attack them directly!" Amane commanded. "Holy Slash!"

With a slash of his saber, Zerato sent a blade of white light that hit Jaden and Jessie and reduced their life points to 1500.

"I end my turn!" Amane announced. Jessie drew his next card, and a smile appeared on his face as he looked at it.

"First I summon Crystal Beast Cobalt Eagle!" Jessie announced. A brown eagle with a black collar set with cobalt gems appeared on the field. "Now I activate the Trap I set a few turns ago, Rainbow Gravity! Since I've brought out all seven Crystal Beasts, I can summon from my deck, Rainbow Dragon!"

A pillar of rainbow light appeared on the field, and from it emerged a white serpentine dragon with four red eyes and a pair of gigantic white-feathered wings. Both sides of the dragon's body were lined with seven gemstones, each one a different color of the rainbow. Many of the spectators gasped in awe as the legendary Rainbow Dragon appeared.

"Rainbow Dragon, attack Blade Knight!" Jessie commanded. "Rainbow Refraction!"

Rainbow Dragon opened his mouth and a ball of rainbow light began to form in its jaws. At that moment, Hikari reacted.

"I activate my Trap, Shadow Spell!" Hikari announced. "This card stops Rainbow Dragon from attacking and decreases its ATK by 700 points!"

A series of black chains appeared around Rainbow Dragon and restrained him.

"Amane and I were hoping to end the duel before you brought out that monster, but it looks like this works too." Hikari explained.

"I set one card one the field and end my turn!" Jessie announced. Hikari drew her next card.

"I'm afraid I can't do anything this turn!" Hikari announced. Jaden drew his next card.

"First I play Pot of Greed and draw two more cards!" Jaden announced. As he drew his two extra cards, he hoped to get something that could turn things around, and he smiled when he saw that he drew just what he needed. "I activate O-Oversoul and summon from my Graveyard, Elemental Hero Neos!"

Appearing on the field was a muscular warrior in a white bodysuit, with green eyes and a single horn on his forehead. Jaden's ace monster had arrived.

"Now I activate Polymerization and fuse Neos with Jessie's Rainbow Dragon to form Rainbow Neos!" Jaden announced.

Noes leapt up and merged into Rainbow Dragon and caused an explosion of white light that shattered the back chains wrapped around it. When the light cleared, a giant version of Neos dressed in armor that looked as if it was made from Rainbow Dragon's scales appeared on the field. The Dragon's massive wings were on Neos's back. The spectators were speechless when they saw Neos's powerful new form.

"Next I summon Avian back to the field!" Jaden announced. The winged hero in green appeared back on the field. "Now I activate Rainbow Neos's effect, Through the Rainbow Hole! By sending Avian to the Graveyard, I can return all other monsters on the field back to the deck!"

Avian shattered and disappeared, and with a flap of Neos's wings, Zerato and Blade Knight disappeared from the field, as did Jessie's remaining monsters. Hikari and Amane were left wide open.

"Rainbow Neos, attack Hikari and Amane directly!" Jaden and Jessie commanded in unison. "Rainbow Flare Stream!"

Neos fired a beam of rainbow light from his horn, which hit the two Etoile and reduced their life points to a mere 900.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced. Amane drew her next card.

"I never expected Neos to be able to fuse with Rainbow Dragon. That was amazing!" Amane commented. "But I'm afraid it won't be enough. I discard one card and activate Lightning Vortex, destroying all of my opponent's monsters!"

A rain of lightning bolt fell from the sky and destroyed Neos, leaving both sides of the battlefield empty of monsters.

"I end my turn!" Amane announced. Jessie's turn began.

"Who do you think is going to win this duel Striker?" Clive asked from the sidelines.

"Hard to say." Striker answered. "Both teams have lost their strongest monsters, not to mention most of their life points. Right now it's anyone's game."

"I end my turn!" Jessie announced without doing anything else. Hikari's turn came.

"I summon The Agent of Creation-Venus in Attack Mode!" Hikari announced. A female angel with gold skin and blond hair appeared on the field.

"That monster has 1600 ATK!" Clive exclaimed. "That's just enough for Hikari and Amane to win the duel!"

"Unless Jessie's facedown card can stop it." Striker added.

"Venus, attack them directly!" Hikari commanded. "Creation Burst!"

Venus fired a ray of white light from her hands, causing Jessie to react.

"I activate my Trap, Mirror Force!" Jessie announced. "Now all of your monsters are destroyed!"

Venus's attack bounced right back at her, destroying the angel and leaving the field empty of monsters once again.

"I end my turn!" Hikari announced. As Jaden drew his next card, he knew that he would have to end the duel that turn.

"First I summon Burstinatrix back to the field!" Jaden announced. The female hero of flames reappeared on the field. "Next I activate Mask Change and transform Burstinatrix into Masked Hero Goka!"

Burstinatrix leapt into the air and in a flash of red light changed into a warrior clad completely in red armor, and a mask with purple insect-like eyes.

"Goka may only have 2200 ATK, but he gains 100 extra ATK for every Hero monster in my Graveyard." Jaden explained. "So since I have eight Heroes in my Graveyard, Goka's attack is now 3000!"

"It's all over now!" Striker exclaimed.

"Goka, attack Amane directly!" Jaden commanded. "Flame Kick!"

With his right boot aflame, Goka delivered a flying kick to Amane and reduced the life points of the two Etoile to zero. As the cards disappeared from the field, every one of the spectators cheered, except for the ones sitting at the Miator student council table, and Dirk Peters. When the crowed finally settled down, the head mistress spoke again.

"That was indeed an exceptional duel!" the head mistress began. "So now with the end of this duel, I hereby declare this banquet over! Everyone be sure to get some rest for the first day of the tournament!"

With that, everyone began to leave. As Jaden and his three friends and fellow visiting duelists, he hoped that the actual tournament would be as fun as the duel he and Jessie had just had that night. For some reason, Jaden couldn't get what Amane had told him about Tamao and the changes to Miator. He wondered if there was some new threat waiting in the shadows.

* * *

**Author's Note:** The reason why this first chapter was so long is because of that big tag duel. I didn't think it was going to be that long at the time, but that's how it turned out. One thing is for sure, it's going to be quite some time before I write another tag duel.

The next chapter is already up, so feel free to take a look. In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	3. A Restless First Night

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 2: A Restless First Night

A few hours after the banquet, everyone had gone off to bed. Amane and Hikari had retired to their room at the Strawberry Dorms. As Etoile, the two had gotten a room with two beds, not that the second bed was used often. Because of their romantic relationship, Hikari and Amane slept in the same bed, which had plenty of space for both of them. The only time when the other bed was being used was when Hikari's friend, Yaya Nanto was spending the night, which only happened when Yaya's roommate and girlfriend, Tsubomi, had kicked her out after some argument. These arguments were usually small however, and were usually resolved the next day. That night, as the two were getting ready for bed, they talked about some of the day's events.

"Did you notice the looks that Chikaru was giving Shion during the meeting today?" Hikari asked, as she emerged from the bathroom in her white nightgown.

"Not really." Amane answered as she sat on the end of the bed in her blue pajamas. "Why, do you think that Chikaru has a thing for Shion?"

"Well they have been friends for a long time." Hikari replied as she joined Amane on the bed. "Who knows? They might be becoming something more."

"Maybe." Amane agreed. "All I know is that Shion needs to take a break or something. Otherwise she's gonna collapse."

"If only Tamao didn't make things so difficult." Hikari replied. "She certainly has changed."

"Maybe she's been mad about her breakup with Nagisa and is taking it out on all of us." Amane theorized.

"That could be it, but…" Hikari began. "Nah, it's silly."

"What?" Amane asked.

"Well, have you ever noticed that weird ring that Tamao always wears?" Hikari asked back.

"You mean that ring with the green stone?" Amane answered. "Yeah, what about it?"

"It just seems like Tamao changed after she started wearing it." Hikari replied. "It's like it's turned her into a different person."

"You think that it's some kind of magic ring?" Amane asked.

"Oh, I don't know what to think." Hikari replied. "All I know is that something weird has been going on this past year."

"Well, let's not worry about it for right now and get some sleep." Amane suggested with her usual kind smile.

"Okay." Hikari smiled back, and with that, the two of them climbed into bed, kissed each other goodnight, and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Meanwhile, Jaden was asleep in his room at the head mistress's guesthouse. It was not a peaceful sleep however, as Jaden was having a rather strange dream. In his dream, Jaden found himself floating in a stormy cloud covered sky above a mountain range. In a clearing Jaden saw what appeared to be an army of Duel Monsters, and a very diverse group at that. There were made up of Warriors, Beast-Warriors, Beasts, Fairies, and many others. Not all of the beings in that clearing were Duel Monsters however. Two of them appeared to be human. One was an old man with a long grey beard, dressed in armor. The other was a young girl with red hair. Like the old man, she was wearing a type of armor, but she looked to Jaden like some kind of princess. Sitting next to the girl was a white wolf that Jaden recognized as the Duel Monster, Silver Fang.

It looked to Jaden as if the gathered army was awaiting something, and sure enough, what they were waiting for came. Marching into the clearing was another army, one made up of what looked to be some kind of armored demons. This new army was not alone however. Flying above the demon army was a huge black sea serpent. Jaden wondered how this army was supposed to beat a creature like that. He also noticed that there was someone riding on the snout of the creature. The person in question was a man with long and very light blue-green hair and dresses in white robes under battle armor. The man's left eye was golden, while his right was a light green. For some reason, Jaden felt like he had seen that eye before, like someone else had eyes like that.

"So this is the resistance you've formed King Ironheart." The man riding the sea serpent said to the old man with a confident smile. "Do you really think this rabble can stand against The Great Leviathan?"

"We will resist you with every ounce of strength we have Dartz!" Ironheart proclaimed. "Don't underestimate us!"

"It doesn't have to be this way you know." Dartz responded. "We could work together to cleanse the world of evil, as a family. You are my father after all Ironheart, and Chris is my daughter. I would prefer not to destroy what's left of my own family."

"Father, please stop this madness!" the girl whom Jaden assumed to be the one called Chris begged.

"So you both think this to be madness?" Dartz responded. "You saw what happened to the people of our kingdom, to my beloved wife Iona, they changed into monsters!"

"They changed into monsters because the power of the Orichalcos corrupted them!" Ironheart rebutted. "Just as it is corrupting you now!"

"You're wrong father!" Dartz responded. "The Orichalcos merely revealed the truth about the world, which is that the people of the world are inherently evil!"

"You leave me no choice but to stop you." Ironheart calmly said.

"And just how do you plan to do that?" Dartz asked as a confident smile returned to his face.

Suddenly three roars echoed throughout the mountain range. Then from behind three of the mountains flew three dragons of western origin. The first was green and had smooth scales. The second was mostly black and was more slender. The scales of the second dragon were more ridged, and it had two large incisors protruding from his mouth. The third was brown, far more muscular than the first two, and had several spikes running down it's back, and a horn on the end of its snout like a rhino's.

"So theses pathetic creatures are also fighting against me?" Dartz laughed. "Their powers are weakened now that they've been changed into dragons! Even if they were still in their original forms they would not stand a chance against The Great Leviathan!"

"We shall see!" Ironheart proclaimed.

With that, the three dragons launched an attack on Dartz and his sea serpant, which Jaden guessed was this "Great Leviathan" that they were all talking about. The Great Leviathan returned fire, hitting the attacks of the three dragons, causing a huge explosion. Jaden woke up in a cold sweat, the dream that he just had felt so real.

"Well that was intense." Yubel commented, as she appeared standing next to Jaden's bed.

"You saw all of that?" Jaden asked.

"We are connected, remember? It's not the first time that I've seen one of your dreams." Yubel replied. "That dream you just had was different though. It was either a vision of some kind, or something you ate at that banquet tonight caused your stomach to get revenge. I mean did you really have to eat four slices of that chocolate cake?"

At that point, Jaden's cat Pharaoh, who was sleeping at the foot of the bed, woke up and yawned. As the cat yawned, a ball of gold light flew out and transformed into the spirit of Lyman Banner, Jaden's dead teacher.

"What's going on here?" Banner asked as if he had just woken up. "The two of you are making enough noise to raise the dead, and I should know."

"Don't trouble yourself Banner. Jaden was just having a weird dream." Yubel replied. "A weird dream that was probably the result of him eating like a pig at that banquet. Who on earth eats four pieces of chocolate cake in a row?"

"Hey Mr. Banner, have you ever heard of something called the Orichalcos?" Jaden interrupted.

"Hmm… If memory serves me, I think it has something to do with the lost city of Atlantis." Banner answered. "Though I have no idea what it is. Why do you ask?"

"…Just curious." Jaden answered, wondering if the dream he had really was just the result of eating too much at the banquet.

"I think that we should all just go back to bed." Yubel suggested. "After all Jaden you do have that big tournament tomorrow."

"Yeah… you're right." Jaden agreed.

With that Yubel vanished and Jaden tried to go back to sleep. Banner turned back into a ball of golden light, which Pharaoh jumped up and ate. As Jaden went back to sleep, however, he suddenly remembered something about the green eye of the man called Dartz in his dream. Tamao had eyes like that, though Jaden decided that it was nothing and finally dozed off.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tamao and her student council were having a meeting down in the basement of Miator. It was a large and old stone brick basement, a relic left over from when Miator was just a finishing school. There were changes made to it though, changes that Tamao herself oversaw. There were pieces of mechanical and scientific equipment scattered throughout the chamber, including a small glass canister containing the fragment of an ancient mural depicting a yellow reptilian eye. The canister itself was fitted into a much larger device placed at the far end of the room. In the center of the basement was a round table with five chairs. Tamao sat in the throne shaped chair while her four student council members sat in the others.

"Well now, it's time for one of out late night meetings." Tamao announced to her council. "The only piece of business for tonight is the preparations for the tournament. Is everything ready Hiyori?"

"I've rechecked the calculations," answered the council member known as Hiyori, "and with all of the duels that will occur due to the tournament, the receiver should pick up enough negative psychic energy needed to resurrect The Great Leviathan."

"I still don't get how this works." The councilmember known as Mika interrupted. "How is gathering all this psychic energy supposed to resurrect the Leviathan?"

"Hiyori, would you please explain to Mika how all of this works?" Tamao asked.

"Oh, of course." Hiyori answered with a slightly startled expression. "It's quite simple really, The Great Leviathan feeds off the negative emotions of humans, the so called 'darkness' of people's hearts. The psychic receiver that President Tamao designed allows us to gather that energy from the people here on the island. So far, we've gathered this type of energy from Miator students, which we've brought out with the club activities that we've created. Now that there are pro duelists on the island, the more aggressive feelings that they'll bring out during their duels shall be collected and used to feed the Leviathan. At the same time, the more aggressive feelings of the students of the other two academies here on the island will be brought out as well."

"And the four of you will help bring those feelings out in your opponents as well." Tamao added. "The four monster cards that I've given you will push any opponent you have into a corner and cause them to fight there hardest, to show no mercy."

"The Great Leviathan should be fully restored before the end of the tournament." Hiyori continued.

"Excellent." Tamao replied with a calm yet sinister smile. "Soon we shall have what we need to destroy this unfair world and create a new one, a pure one!"

"We shall all do our best to help you achieve that goal, President." Replied the councilmember known as Jane. The other three members of the student council nodded.

"I know you will my dear friends." Tamao responded. "There is no way we can fail."

* * *

**Author's Note:** It was nice doing a chapter that didn't have any dueling in it after that last chapter. The action picks back up in the next one though.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	4. The Tournament Begins

**Author's Note:** Because Shizuma and Nagisa aren't actually in this story, it allowed me to focus more on the side characters from Strawberry Panic, which was actually quite fun.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 3: The Tournament Begins

The morning came, and despite the weird dream that he had the previous night, Jaden felt refreshed. He got dressed in his usual outfit, put on his duel disk, and opened the door. Before he left the room, Jaden glanced down and noticed a small box that must have been left in front of the door to his room the previous night. Jaden picked up the box and opened it. The first thing he saw in the box was a card with the message, "Put this on and be in front of Spica at 10:00."

The item that Jaden was supposed to put on was some sort of digital watch, but the face was dark. Jaden shrugged and put the watch on his right wrist. Out waiting in the main room of the guesthouse were Jessie, Striker, and Clive. Jaden noticed that they too were wearing the same digital watch-like devises.

"You're finally up." Striker said to Jaden. "We've been waiting for you."

"Sorry, I had a rough night." Jaden replied. "Are these watches part of the tournament?"

"Seeing how we all have one, I'd say that's a pretty safe bet Fusion Master." Clive answered. "Now it's almost 10:00, so let's get going to Spica."

"I'll lead the way." Jaden replied, and with that, the four set off.

A few minutes later, the four duelists were out in front of Spica, and they weren't alone. Not only were every other visiting pro duelist there, but also several students from Miator and Spica. There were a few Lilum students mixed in too, but not very many. A small wooden stage was set up in front of the school. All in all, it was a good sized crowed. As everyone was chatting with each other, a young girl with long pink hair, wearing a yellow sweater over her Spica uniform, walked up on stage. Jaden recognized the girl as Tsubomi Okuwaka, one of the friends he had made on the island the last time he was there.

"Attention competitors!" Tsubomi said into a microphone. "Welcome to the first day of the Astraea Star Cup tournament! Before the competition begins, our island's two Etoile shall explain the rules!"

Hikari and Amane walked onto the stage. Tsubomi handed the microphone to Amane as she walked off stage.

"Welcome once again duelists to the Astraea Star Cup tournament." Amane said into the microphone. "Now, all of you who are participating in the tournament, including those of you who are pro duelists, have received a device that looks like digital watch. That device is a point recorder, which will activate now."

On cue, the watch devices on every competitor's wrist lit up, showing a five.

"Those point recorders are all linked to a computer here on the island, and also receive signals from your duel disks." Amane continued. "Every competitor starts out with five points. At the end of each duel, the winner receives the difference between his or her own amount of points, and the points of the opponent. At the same time, the loser will lose the same amount of points. If both duelists have the same number of points, the winner gains the amount of points equal to that of their opponent's while the loser loses the same amount. When a duelist's points reach zero, he or she is out of the game. The first round of the tournament will be fought battle royale style across the island over the course of ten days. When a duelist has one-hundred points, that duelist will automatically be entered in the finals, and will also be off limits to the other competitors."

"Dueling won't begin for an hour, so take this time to scatter through the island and prepare." Hikari added, speaking into her own microphone. "Just so all of you know, Amane and I won't be competing. Our duty is to preside over the competition. Also, there's only room for eight people in the finals, so may the best duelists win! Now get out there and get ready to duel!"

With that, Hikari and Amane walked off the stage. Several of the competitors began leaving the crowed to go find a spot on the island. Jaden and his three friends took a moment to talk.

"The way I see it, there are probably around eighty people or more competing in this tournament right now." Striker theorized. "That means that at least half will be eliminated by the end of the day."

"In other words, the weak players will be weeded out before the day is over." Clive replied.

"I wouldn't quite put it that way, but you're right." Striker agreed. "Now I think that if we all want to make it to the finals, we should all avoid dueling each other until than."

"I've got no problem with that." Clive replied.

"I'm okay with that too." Jessie agreed.

"I guess I'm in too." Jaden nodded.

"Okay, than I guess we'll all see each other in the finals!" Striker proclaimed. Jaden and the other two nodded, and the group went their separate ways.

"And just what were you four planning?" a voice suddenly asked as Jaden walked away.

"Chikaru!" Jaden exclaimed in a pleasantly surprised tone as he turned to see who the speaker was. "Are you in this tournament too?"

"As a matter of fact I am." Chikaru replied. "So what were you and your three friends talking about?"

"We all agreed not to duel each other until we made it to the finals." Jaden answered.

"I see." Chikaru replied. "Mind if you and I make a similar pact? I fully intend to make it to the finals too."

"Not at all!" Jaden responded happily. "It'd be great to face you in the finals. Plus it'd make up for the last duel we had."

"Oh yeah." Chikaru replied with a chuckle. "I was quite a terror wasn't I?"

"Yeah, but that was that Wicked God you had." Jaden laughed back. "It's good that you can laugh about that now."

"Yeah, I've gotten over it." Chikaru replied. "Well, I'll see you in the finals."

With that, Chikaru walked off, and Jaden continued off towards where he was going. As Jaden walked though, he was unaware that Shion was following him, and she didn't look happy.

* * *

During the hour before the start of the tournament, Jaden waited by the small lake on the island. It was perhaps his favorite place on Astraea Island. It was a peaceful spot, and it was also the place where he witnessed the beginning of a love story. It was by this lake where he first met Shizuma Hanazono and Nagisa Aoi. He had no idea that their meeting would turn into an epic love that was powerful enough to destroy a demon. They had a few obstacles to overcome along the way, but in the end it turned out well. The point recorder that Jaden was wearing suddenly beeped, signaling the end of the hour before the dueling had come to an end. Jaden began walking off to find his first opponent.

"Stop right there Jaden Yuki!" a voice suddenly commanded. Jaden turned to see that it was Shion, and she looked mad.

"Uh, hi Shion." Jaden greeted as a feeling of nervousness creped over him. "Are you in this tournament too?"

"Yes I am. All of the student council presidents are participating." Shion answered. "Enough about that though. I saw you with Chikaru an hour ago!"

"Yeah, what about it?" Jaden asked.

"As I recall, you two got pretty close the last time you were here." Shion replied.

"We became friends and she helped me out if that's what you mean." Jaden responded with a raised eyebrow. "What are you getting at?"

"What I'm getting at is that I don't want you on this island!" Shion answered. "Which is why I must knock you out of this tournament!"

It dawned on Jaden that Shion thought that he and Chikaru were in a romantic relationship, which couldn't be further from the truth. Still, Jaden could see that there was no way to convince Shion of that. Besides, there was no way that Jaden could turn down a challenge. The two of them activated their duel disks, and the duel began.

"I'm going first!" Shion announced as she drew her first card. "I set one monster on the field and end my turn!"

Jaden drew his first card, wondering what Shion was planning. She had prepared a flimsy defense, or at least that's how it seemed. The fact that Shion played her monster facedown without anything to protect it suggested that it had some sort of devastating effect that would be triggered when flipped face up. There was only one way to find out what it was though.

"First I summon Elemental Hero Stratos in Attack Mode!" Jaden announced. A warrior in blue armor, a white helmet with a tinted visor, and a pair of mechanical wings appeared on the field. "When Stratos is summoned, I can add one Hero monster from my deck to my hand! So I add to my hand Elemental Hero Clayman! Next I play Polymerization and fuse Clayman with Elemental Hero Sparkman in my hand to summon Elemental Hero Thunder Giant!"

A gigantic warrior in a purple costume with white and brown armor descended from the sky onto the field.

"Stratos, attack Shion's monster!" Jaden commanded. "Hero Typhoon!"

The propellers on Stratos' mechanical wings spun and shot a pair of twisters at Shion's monster, which was revealed to be a small purple penguin wearing orange armor. The penguin shattered into triangles of golden light upon being struck.

"You just activated the effect of my Penguin Soldier!" Shion announced with a confident grin. "When it's flipped face up, I can return two monsters on the field to their owner's hand. So your two heroes vanish from the field!"

On cue, Jaden's two monsters vanished from the battlefield, leaving Jaden wide open to an attack.

"The best part of this though is that your Thunder Giant goes back to the Fusion Deck instead of to your hand!" Shion added.

"I'll lay down a facedown and end my turn!" Jaden announced. Shion began her turn.

"First I play the Field Spell, A Legendary Ocean!" Shion announced. The instant Shion played her card, the small lake surrounded by forest transformed into an underwater city. The scene somehow reminded Jaden of the strange dream that he had the previous night. "Next I summon the Sea-Serpent Warrior of Darkness in Attack Mode!"

A mysterious fish-like warrior with dark-blue scales appeared on the field. In its right hand it carried a long golden harpoon.

"My Field Spell not only lowers the levels of all Water monsters on the field and in my hand by one, but it also increases their ATK by 200 points." Shion explained. "Which means my Warrior's ATK is now 2000! Warrior, attack Jaden directly with Harpoon of the Deep!"

The aquatic warrior threw his harpoon at Jaden, causing the wandering duelist to react.

"I activate my facedown, Negate Attack!" Jaden announced. "This stops your attack cold!"

The warrior's harpoon vanished into the small vortex that momentarily appeared in front of Jaden, blocking the attack. A moment later, the harpoon reappeared in the warrior's hand.

"I end my turn!" Shion announced angrily. Jaden drew his next card.

"First I activate Pot of Greed and draw two more cards!" Jaden announced. "Next I activate Polymerization to fuse Stratos with Elemental Hero Avian in my hand to summon Elemental Hero Great Tornado!"

A warrior wearing light green and tan armor along with a tattered dark brown cape appeared on the field. Suddenly a huge gust of wind knocked Shion's monster to the ground.

"When Great Tornado is summoned to the field, it cuts the ATK points of my opponent's monsters in half!" Jaden explained. "Great Tornado, attack the Sea Serpent Warrior of Darkness with Super Cell!"

The wind hero launched a huge tornado at the aquatic warrior. The force of the twister completely destroyed Shion's monster and reduced her life points to 2200.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced. Shion drew her next card with an expression of fury on her face.

"One way or another, I'm knocking you out of this tournament Jaden Yuki!" Shion declared. "First I remove Sea Serpent Warrior of Darkness from my Graveyard to summon Aqua Spirit!"

A girl with light green skin, aqua green hair, and wearing a flowing white dress appeared on the field.

"Now I sacrifice my Aqua Spirit to summon Levia-Dragon-Deadalus!" Shion announced.

The Aqua Spirit shattered, and in her place appeared a gigantic light blue sea serpent with four red eyes. Jaden was unsettled by the creature's appearance, as it also reminded him of the strange dream he had the previous night.

"Now I evolve Levia-Dragon-Deadalus into Ocean Dragon Lord-Neo-Deadalus!" Shion declared.

The sea serpent before Jaden suddenly grew an extra head. The second head was a lighter shade of blue and only had two eyes. Two red fins grew on the sides of the creature's first head, along with a taller fin along the serpent's back.

"Now I activate Deadalus's effect and sacrifice A Legendary Ocean to destroy all other cards on the field and every card in our hands!" Shion announced.

Deadalus roared and suddenly the underwater city around the two duelists crumbled and Jaden was hit with an enormous tidal wave. When the wave passed, Jaden and Shion were back next to the lake on Astraea Island, and the only thing left on the battlefield was Deadalus.

"Deadalus, attack Jaden directly!" Shion commanded. "Ocean's Fury!"

Deadalus fired a torrent of water from both of his heads, which hit Jaden for about a minute. By the time it was over, Jaden's life points were reduced to 1100.

"It's over Jaden!" Shion declared with a confident smirk. "You have no cards in your hand, and no matter what you draw, it can't defend against Deadalus! I'll end my turn!"

"It's not over until the last card is drawn!" Jaden declared as he drew his next card. Jaden looked at the card and smiled. "Since I have no cards on the field, I can Special Summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman!"

Appearing on the field was a short warrior in light blue armor equipped with a blue cape and light blue water tanks on his back.

"When Bubbleman is Special Summoned while I have no cards in my hand or on the field, I can draw two more cards!" Jaden announced.

"Like it matters." Shion said confidently. "Nothing you draw will help."

"Nothing except this, I activate Super Polymerization!" Jaden announced. "I discard my last card to fuse Bubbleman with Deadalus to summon Elemental Hero Absolute Zero!"

Shion's confident expression was replaced with one of utter shock as both monsters were sucked into the massive fusion vortex that appeared in the sky. The vortex disappeared in a flash of light, and a new hero in ice armor and a black cape dropped onto the field. Shion knew that Absolute Zero's ATK was 2500, more than enough to finish her off.

"Zero, attack Shion directly!" Jaden commanded. "Instant Freeze!"

Absolute Zero fired a massive blizzard at Shion, reducing her life points to zero. The moment the duel ended, the number on Jaden's point counter changed from five to ten. At the same time, the number on Shion's point counter changed from five to zero, and a red light began to flash on the device, indicating that she was out of the tournament.

"Well, that's game." Jaden said as he did his trademark victory pose, though he was a little reluctant to do it.

"What's going on here?" a voice suddenly asked. Jaden and Shion both turned to see who was speaking and saw that it was Chikaru.

"C-Chikaru!" a startled Shion exclaimed. "H-how much of…?"

"How much of that duel did I see? Practically all of it." Chikaru replied before Shion could finish her question. "Shion, why were you trying to knock Jaden out of the tournament?"

"W-well I…" Shion stammered nervously. "Is Jaden your boyfriend?"

Chikaru looked at Shion as if she had just swallowed a live goldfish, as did Jaden.

"B-boyfriend?" Chikaru asked sounding a bit startled. "What on earth gave you that idea?"

"Well, you spent so much time together last time he was here, and hardly any with me." Shion said looking a little ashamed. "Plus you're so friendly with him."

"Shion, the reason I spent so much time with Jaden last year was because I was helping him look for the Wicked God cards." Shion responded. "He's just a friend, nothing more. Besides, he's not my type. No offence Jaden."

"None taken." Jaden replied, sounding a little uncomfortable.

"C'mon, let's go some place where you can lay down for a little while. You look a little on edge." Chikaru suggested to Shion.

"That sounds good." Shion agreed, and the two walked off. Both girls gave a little wave to Jaden as they walked off, and Jaden waved back.

"It's a shame to see poor Shion knocked out of the tournament so soon." A voice suddenly said. Jaden turned and saw that it was Tamao. "Still, it's probably for the best. The poor girl has been under so much pressure lately. The last thing she needs is to worry about winning some tournament."

"Hi Tamao." Jaden greeted somewhat wearily. He found himself feeling a little uneasy in Tamao's presence. Jaden then noticed that Tamao was also wearing a point counter. Not to mention the ring with the odd green stone. "Are you in the tournament too?"

"Why yes I am." Tamao answered with a cheerful smile. "Don't worry though, I'm not going to challenge you to a duel. It's foolish to go after someone so powerful this early in the tournament. I'm sure we'll face each other soon enough though."

"Yeah." Jaden replied, giving Tamao a look of distrust.

"Well, I should get going. Good luck in the tournament!" Tamao said. With that, Tamao walked off.

"I don't trust Tamao." Yubel said as she appeared next to Jaden with her arms crossed. "There's something different about her, something dark."

"You're right." Jaden agreed. "I don't think that this tournament is going to be as fun as we thought."

* * *

I think you can guess where this thing with Chikaru and Shion is going.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	5. Clive the Gambler

**Author's Note:** This might be the most amusing chapter in the story so far.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 4: Clive the Gambler

It was the second day of the Astraea Star Cup Tournament. Young pro duelists were clashing with students from the three duel academies all over the island. Only eight would make it to the finals, and already there were a few contestants that were eliminated, while others were slowly advancing. After his duel with Shion the previous day, Jaden had defeated two others, both of them Spica students. He already had twenty points on his counter, but in order to get into the finals, Jaden needed one hundred points.

Unfortunately there weren't very many other duelists who were willing to face him. Jaden had somewhat of a reputation on the island. Not only was he known for beating Hikari and Amane, but also for beating the previous Etoile, Shizuma Hanazono. The students of Astraea Island also knew Jaden as the one who defeated the combined form of the Wicked God cards. But in Jaden's mind it was really Shizuma and Nagisa who defeated that creature, for it was there love that awakened the card he used to destroy the demon.

The bottom line was that Jaden was known as a powerful duelist on the island; so many of the students were afraid to face him. Jaden decided that the only way for him to score enough points to enter the finals was to go after the visiting pro duelists, and there were still plenty of them. As Jaden walked, he ran across his new friend, Striker, and he had just defeated another opponent, a Miator student who Jaden didn't know. After his opponent walked away in disgust, Striker turned and saw Jaden.

"This is a pleasant surprise." Striker said as he walked up to Jaden.

"Same here." Jaden replied. "How's the tournament going?"

"See for yourself." Striker said as he held up his wrist to display his point counter. Jaden was surprised to see that he had thirty points.

"Wow, you must've been in a lot of duels yesterday." Jaden said sounding impressed.

"Actually I was only in two yesterday." Striker replied. "My last opponent had fifteen points, the same amount I had only a little while ago. Now she's out and I'm further ahead. How're you doing so far?"

"Well, I haven't lost any duels, but I only have twenty points." Jaden answered. "A lot of the students here are kind of afraid to face me."

"Oh yeah, I've heard some of the girls here gossiping about you." Striker replied as he recalled some of the conversations that a few of the students on the island had about Jaden. "What did you do when you were on this island last time?"

"No doubt he added to his own legend." A voice answered. Both Jaden and Striker turned to see that it was Clive. "That's one of the things I like about this island, not only are there pretty ladies as far as the eye can see, but I also find more stories about the legendary Fusion Master."

"Am I really that big of a legend to you Clive?" Jaden asked with a smile and a raised eyebrow.

"You wouldn't believe some of the stuff I've heard about you mate." Clive answered. "I didn't believe most it until I saw you in that tag duel a few nights ago."

"Clive is really into what he calls 'mythical duelists'." Striker explained. "They're basically duelists who're very powerful, but not very well known or forgotten, so they become like an urban legend."

"Right you are Striker." Clive replied. "I'd also like to add that out of all the mythical duelists I've heard about Fusion Master, you're easily my second favorite."

"Thanks, though I have to ask, who's your favorite?" Jaden asked.

"I was hoping you'd ask." Clive said with grin. "My favorite mythical duelist of all time is none other than Joey Wheeler, the legendary gambler!"

"Oh yeah, I've heard of him." Jaden replied. "He's actually pretty good. He made it to the finals of both the Duelist Kingdom and Battle City tournaments."

"He's also won several small tournaments too." Clive added. "And all of them were won with sheer luck. Joey Wheeler is the ultimate gambler."

"Not all of them were won with just luck Clive." Striker cut in. "Joey Wheeler is a skilled duelist too, a fighter. No matter how tough the challenge, he always won. He entered Duelist Kingdom when he was just a rookie, and that tournament was filled with some of the strongest duelists of that time. Despite that, he made it all the way to the final rounds. It's like he had an invincible fighting spirit."

"You sound like you're a big admirer of Joey Wheeler yourself." Jaden said to Striker.

"He's well known at the academy I went to." Striker replied. "I even met him one time."

"You never get tired of rubbing that in my face, do you Striker?" Clive cut in. "Anyway, Joey's dueling style is quite a match for my own."

"You use a gambling deck Clive?" Jaden asked.

"That I do Fusion Master, that I do." Clive said with a sense of pride. "Luck is a pretty big factor in this game, and when luck is on my side, I'm practically unbeatable."

"Then you must be pretty unlucky, because I've beaten you several times." Striker said with an amused smile.

Clive didn't respond to Striker's comment though. He was too busy looking at something else. Both Jaden and Stiker turned to see what Clive was looking at and saw that it was Chikaru. Clive gazed over his sunglasses at the raven-haired Lilum student.

"Well, well," Clive said with a smile, "'scuse me mates. I'm feeling lucky right now."

With that, Clive walked off towards Chikaru.

"Well, here we go again." Striker said as he shook his head in amusement. "Clive has always been a sucker for a pretty girl. Looks like he's going to try putting the moves on another one."

"I don't think he'll have much luck with Chikaru." Jaden said with a knowing smile.

"Oh I'm sure you're right." Striker replied. "That's not gonna stop him though. He'll ask this girl out, and if she shoots him down, he'll get so desperate that he'll try and challenge her to a duel with the condition that she goes out with him on one date if he wins. Let's go watch."

Jaden and Striker followed Clive to where Chikaru was standing.

"Hello there." Clive said to Chikaru in a suave manner.

"Oh, hi." Chikaru greeted with a warm smile when she noticed Clive. "You're one of Jaden's friends, aren't you."

"You could say that." Clive replied, still trying to sound smooth. "The name's Winston, Clive Winston. It's a pleasure running into a young lady such as yourself, Ms…"

"Um, Chikaru." The raven-haired girl answered.

"Chikaru, that's a lovely name." Clive said still in a suave manner. "What's say that tonight you and I go out? I'm sure there are plenty of places on this island where we could have a quiet date."

"Um, I'm flattered, but you aren't my type." Chikaru said, sounding a little uncomfortable.

"Don't be so quick to say no." Clive said not intending to give up. "An evening with the Clivester is one that you won't soon forget."

"I'm really not interested." Chikaru replied.

"Well then, how about this? The two of us duel, and if I win, you go out on one date with me." Clive suggested.

"…How many points do you have?" Chikaru asked after a brief pause.

"Twenty." Clive answered.

"Well, I have twenty-five…" Chikaru said as she thought over Clive's little wager. "Okay, I'll take you on."

With that, both Chikaru and Clive activated their duel disks. Nearby, Shion had seen all of Clive and Chikaru's conversation, and she was in no way happy about what was going on. Jaden was the only one who noticed Shion's arrival, and he saw the look of fury on her face. Jaden said nothing however. With their life points set at 4000, the duel began. Chikaru let Clive go first.

"First I summon Strike Ninja in Attack Mode!" Clive announced. A black suited ninja wearing a red scarf and a gold mask appeared on the field. "Then I set two cards and end my turn!"

"First I summon The Six Samurai-Nisashi in Attack Mode!" Chikaru announced.

A muscular samurai wearing green armor appeared on Chikaru's side of the field. In each hand he carried a sword. A glowing green line ran down parts of his armor.

"Next I activate the Spell card, Double Summon, and summon The Six Samurai-Irou!" Chikaru announced. Appearing on the field was another samurai in black and dark purple armor. Irou carried a single sword and wore a visor over his eyes. A glowing purple line ran down parts of his armor. "Finally, I Special Summon Grandmaster of the Six Samurai!"

A third samurai appeared on the field. This one was older than the other two. He had long white hair and a beard and wore dull grey and black armor. In place of a normal left eye was a cybernetic implant that suggested that the Grandmaster had lost his original eye in combat.

"Wow, a Six Samurai deck. I'm impressed." Striker commented from the sidelines.

"If the Grandmaster's attack gets through, Clive will be finished." Jaden observed. "Nisashi only has 1400 ATK, but can attack twice because Irou and the Grandmaster are both on the field. After that, one attack from Irou would finish it."

"Don't underestimate Clive." Striker responded. "If I'm right about the combo he has set up, the Grandmaster is finished."

"Grandmaster, attack the Strike Ninja!" Chikaru commanded. "Swift Samurai Slash!"

The old samurai charged at Clive's ninja with his sword held high.

"I activate my facedown cards, Skull Dice and Graceful Dice!" Clive announced.

Appearing on the field behind Strike Ninja were two small creatures. One was a sort of imp wearing black pants and gloves, and a hybrid of mask and black pointed hat with bat wings on the side. In its black-gloved clawed hands it carried a large red die. The other creature was a sort of fairy wearing a white-buttoned shirt and gloves, along with orange overalls and an orange bowler hat with white wings. In its arms the fairy carried a large blue die.

"Skull Dice lowers the ATK of your monster by the result of the die times a hundred, and Graceful Dice raises the ATK of my monster by the result of the die times a hundred!" Clive explained. "Now let's roll!"

The two creatures threw the dice. The red die thrown by the imp landed on two. A light from the red die entered the Grandmaster and lowered his attack power to 1900. Though the old samurai was weakened, he did not stop his charge. The blue die thrown by the fairy landed on four, and a light from the die entered Strike Ninja, increasing his attack power from 1700 to 2100. The ninja leapt out of the way just in time to avoid the swing of the old samurai's sword.

"Counter attack Strike Ninja!" Clive commanded. "Shadow Claw!"

The ninja threw several shuriken at the Grandmaster, killing the old warrior. The battle had reduced Chikau's life points to 3800.

"A Joey Wheeler classic." Striker commented. "I told you that you shouldn't underestimate Clive."

"Maybe, but Chikaru still has the advantage." Jaden added.

"I'll set one card on the field and end my turn!" Chikaru announced. Clive drew his next card.

"First I sacrifice Strike Ninja to summon Maximum Six!" Clive announced.

Strike Ninja shattered, and in his place appeared a muscular giant with six arms and purple skin. A red roman numeral six was painted on his chest.

"Now watch, my lovely Chikaru, as the effect of Maximum Six kicks in!" Clive announced. "When Six is tribute summoned, a die is rolled, and Six gains ATK equal to the result times 200!"

As if on cue, a large purple die rolled onto the field and landed on three.

"Oh yeah! This means Six's ATK goes up from 1900 to a powerhouse 2500!" Clive exclaimed. "I am lucky today!"

"Clive sure is confident." Jaden commented.

"Yeah, but it's usually when he gets too confident when Clive screws up." Striker added.

"Maximum Six, attack Nisashi!" Clive commanded. "Six-Arm Crush!"

The giant charged at the duel sword-wielding samurai.

"Luck alone won't get you victory! I activate my Trap, Covering Fire!" Chikaru announced. "This let's me add Irou's 1700 ATK to Nisahi's during a battle!"

Irou charged into Maximum Six's path and stabbed the giant in the chest with his sword. At that moment, Nisashi leapt into the air and decapitated the giant with his sword. The battle had reduced Clive's life points to 3400.

"Well, no worries. I'll set one card on the field and end my turn!" Clive announced. Chikaru drew her next card.

"First I activate Pot of Greed and draw two more cards!" Chikaru announced. "Next I activate The Warrior Returning Alive and bring Grandmaster of the Six Samurai back to my hand! Now I Special Summon Grandmaster of the Six Samurai!"

The grizzled old samurai warrior appeared back on the field.

"This is an epic duel!" Jaden commented. "Both Clive and Chikaru keep turning it around!"

"Yeah, but if Clive can't turn it around, it'll all be over." Striker added.

"Grandmaster, attack Clive directly!" Chikaru commanded. "Swift Samurai Slash!"

The old samurai warrior charged towards Clive with his sword.

"I activate my Trap, Mirror Force!" Clive announced. "Now your whole Samurai army is destroyed!"

The Grandmaster's sword hit a barrier that caused a huge explosion that destroyed all of Chikaru's monsters.

"I guess there's nothing more I can do. I end my turn!" Chikaru announced.

"It looks like Clive has the advantage now." Jaden observed.

"Yeah, but he could still lose if he tries to show off." Striker replied. Clive drew his next card and grinned a huge grin.

"This duel is gonna end on the next turn!" Clive declared. "I set one monster on the field and end my turn!"

"Yeah, Clive's gonna try showing off." Striker sighed.

"Do you know what card Clive played?" Jaden asked.

"Not for sure, but I have a feeling." Striker replied. Chikaru drew her next card.

"I summon The Six Samurai-Zanji!" Chikaru announced.

Appearing on the field was a white-faced samurai in orange and black armor wielding a bladed pole weapon called a naginata.

"Zanji, attack Clive's monster!" Chikaru commanded. "Naginata of Light!"

The samurai swung his blade down on the unknown monster, revealing a large brown jar with a purple face that was winking and sticking its tongue out on one end.

"Yep, he played Dice Jar." Striker sighed.

"You may have destroyed my Dice Jar my lovely Chikaru, but you've also activated its effect." Clive announced. "One die is rolled for each of us, and we each take damage equal to the roll times 500. But if one of us rolls a six, we take 6000 points of damage."

"6000 points? That's a powerful card!" Jaden exclaimed.

"Yeah, but it's also a double edged sword." Striker added. "Either player could take 6000 points of damage, or both could. It's a major gamble."

The jar shattered and a pair of dice fell out. The first die rolled in front of Chikaru and landed on a three. The die shocked Chikaru with a bolt of electricity, and dropped her life points to 2300. The second die rolled in front of Clive and landed on a six. The die exploded and took Clive's life points to zero. Chikaru won the duel. The number on Clive's point counter changed to fifteen, while Chikaru's points went up to thirty.

"Looks like you won." Clive said as the smoke cleared. "But I don't give up so easily. Care to go again?"

"Chikaru beat you, so buzz off Romeo! C'mon Chikaru!" Shion said as she stormed up to the group. Shion grabbed Chikaru's right hand and stormed off, dragging Chikaru with her.

"What the heck was that about?" Striker asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I think I know." Jaden answered with a slightly amused smile.

"Well, looks like I blew it." Clive said as he approached Jaden and Striker. "I'm gonna go look for a new opponent and make up for the points I lost. See you two later."

With that, Clive left the duo alone.

"I think I'll go look for some more opponents too." Striker said to Jaden. "See you later."

"Later." Jaden said as Striker walked away.

"Do you think that idiot boy Clive is going to try putting the moves of Chikaru again?" Yubel asked as she suddenly appeared.

"Let's hope not." Jaden answered. "Otherwise Shion is gonna kill him."

* * *

A little later, both Shion and Chikaru were by the lake, and it wasn't until that point that Shion finally let go of Chikaru's hand. Chikaru was not at all happy with being dragged away in such a manner.

"Shion, what is with you?" Chikaru asked angrily as she rubbed her right hand.

"What's with me? What on earth is with you?" Shion asked angrily. "How could take that loser's bet to go out with him on a date if you lost?"

"I won, didn't I?" Chikaru responded. "Besides, even if I did lose, it just would've been one date, nothing serious!"

"One date?" Shion asked sounding outraged. "You mean you actually would've gone out with that loser?"

"What does it matter to you?" Chikaru asked.

"It matters because I'm in love with you!" Shion blurted out.

Chikaru was quit startled by Shion's confession, though perhaps not quite as startled as Shion herself. The blond girl did not intend to reveal her feelings in such a manner.

"Uh, I'm sorry…" Shion said as she turned her back to Chikaru out of embarrassment. "It's just… well I've had these feelings about you for awhile now and… well…"

Shion did not get a chance to finish what she was trying to say. Suddenly Chikaru turned Shion around and planted a firm kiss on her lips. Shion was startled at first, but after a brief moment relaxed into it. After about four minutes, the kiss finally broke.

"I… I love you too." Chikaru finally said. "I've been in love with you for quite some time now, but… I was never sure how to tell you, or if you felt the same way. I didn't want to take the risk of ruining our friendship."

"I felt the same way." Shion replied with a warm smile. "We've been friends for so long. I didn't want to risk ruining our friendship either if you didn't feel the same way I feel about you."

Both girls laughed about how their reasons for keeping their true feelings secret were the same. It helped to break the tension a little bit. After a moment there was another pause.

"So… what now?" Chikaru asked.

"Why don't we just continue where we left off?" Shion suggested before bringing Chikaru into another long kiss.

The two were so engrossed in each other that neither of them noticed that Tamao had been watching them the whole time. Tamao's expression was calm, but her eyes were filled with a deep rage.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I think the main reason why I decided to have Chikaru use a Six Samurai deck is because it's a deck type that I myself am very familiar with. Of course mine is made up of the Legendary Six Samurai that showed up during the tail end of the 5D's era.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	6. Tamao the Dark Queen

**Author's Note:** I have a pretty bad headache at the moment, so I don't feel like doing any actual writing. But I thought I could at least add the next chapter of this story, which only involved a little editing.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 5: Tamao the Dark Queen

Late on the night of the second day of the tournament, Jane Hawthorn, one of the Four Witches of Miator, was walking back to the Strawberry Dorms after a long meeting of the student council. Jane was alone on her walk. The other members of Miator's student council were still working on matters for the school, and since it seemed that she wasn't needed, Jane decided to leave early. As the dark-brown haired girl walked, she was unaware that there was someone watching her.

"Isn't it a little late for a girl like you to be out on her own?" a gruff masculine voice suddenly asked.

Jane turned around and saw a young but large and rather muscular figure with black hair and wearing a white tank top and green jeans. Jane quickly realized that the person was one of the visiting duelists that had come for the tournament.

"Who are you?" Jane asked, tensing up a little. She didn't like the expression on the young man's face. His expression was that of a predatory sneer, one that gave Jane the feeling he had something on his mind other than dueling.

"The name's Dirk Peters." The young man finally answered. "And I've had my eye on you since that banquet a few nights ago."

"Well if you've come for a duel, you'll have to wait until morning!" Jane replied, hoping that a duel was the only thing that Dirk wanted. "It's late, and I'm going to bed!"

"Oh I didn't come for a duel." Dirk said as he suddenly grabbed Jane's arm as she turned to leave. "There's a different reason why I've had my eye on you."

"Let go of me!" Jane cried as she struggled to get out of Dirk's strong grip.

Suddenly a fast moving figure ran up from the side and struck Dirk's wrist, forcing him to release Jane. The figure then got in front of Jane and delivered a swift kick to Dirk's gut, knocking him to the ground. Though Jane couldn't see the face of her rescuer, she knew immediately who it was. That long raven black hair tied in a ponytail and the skirt that was slightly shorter than those of other Miator students could only belong to Tomoyo, her fellow student council member. As Dirk managed to get back to his feet, Tomoyo glared at him with her icy blue eyes.

"Who the hell are you?" Dirk demanded. Tomoyo remained silent. "Not talking huh? Well whoever you are, get lost! Otherwise I'm gonna have to teach you a lesson!"

Tomoyo's response was to take a fighting stance. Jane only stood behind Tomoyo. Her common sense was telling her to run back to the dorm, but for some reason she couldn't bring herself to leave.

"All right, you asked for it!" Dirk said as he prepared to fight Tomoyo.

"What's going on here?" a voice suddenly asked from behind.

Dirk turned around and saw Tamao standing behind him with Mika and Hiyori.

"Whoever you are, get lost!" Dirk growled at Tamao. "This is none of your business!"

"Those two girls are members of my student council, so I'm making it my business." Tamao replied with a calm, almost emotionless expression. "Now what are you trying to do to them?"

"That black haired girl tried beating me up, so I'm going to teach her a lesson she'll never forget!" Dirk replied angrily.

"And here I thought you were a duelist." Tamao responded. "But all I see here is some dumb gorilla who likes beating up on young ladies. I don't see how you managed to get into this tournament."

"Hey, I got here because I'm the best!" Dirk growled.

"I find that hard to believe." Tamao coldly replied.

"Oh yeah? Well take a look at this!" Dirk responded, holding up the wrist that his point counter was on. "I've already got fifty points, which means I'm half way to the finals!"

"I'm not at all impressed." Tamao replied. "I bet you just looked around for the weakest duelists and bullied them into facing you. You wouldn't stand a chance against someone of my level."

"And just how many points do you have, little miss hotshot?" Dirk asked.

"Only five." Tamao replied.

"Five?" Dirk laughed. "And you're saying that I couldn't beat you?"

"I haven't had the chance to duel yet." Tamao calmly responded. "My duties as student council president keep me very busy."

"You can make all the excuses you want!" Dirk laughed. "All they say is that you can't duel to save your life!"

"Care to prove that by facing me right here and now?" Tamao asked. Tamao's challenge startled the members of her student council.

"H-hey Lady Tamao. You shouldn't trouble yourself with this loser. If you want, I can take him on for you." Mika offered.

"That won't be necessary Mika." Tamao replied. "This ape is nothing to me. Besides, I need to let off a little steam. So how about it ape, do you accept my challenge?"

"Hah! Bring it on!" Dirk answered, eager to put Tamao in her place. They both activated their duel disks, and with their life points set at 4000, the duel began.

"I believe that even an ape like you is familiar with the expression, 'ladies first.'" Tamao said as she drew her first card. "First I shall play the Field Spell, The Seal of Orichalcos!"

The moment Tamao played her card, a ring of green light slowly fell from the sky onto the ground around the two duelists. The moment the circle hit the ground, a line bounced around the inside of the circle until it formed a unicursal hexagram. A smaller version of the symbol appeared on Tamao's forehead. The glowing green light made it visible from behind her blue locks.

"Next I summon Mystical Elf in Defense Mode!" Tamao announced. Appearing on the field was a female elf with blond hair and light blue skin, wearing a green robe. The Orichalcos symbol appeared on the elf's forehead, and her eyes began to glow red. "Just so you know, The Seal of Orichalcos gives all my monsters 500 extra ATK points. Not that it matters, as my elf is in Defense Mode. Now I'll set one card on the field and end my turn!"

"Is your little magic circle supposed to scare me?" Dirk asked in a taunting manner as he drew his first card. "First I summon Enraged Battle Ox in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on Dirk's side of the field was a muscular brown Minotaur in red and gold armor. In his right hand he carried a large axe.

"Next I equip my Battle Ox with Horn of the Unicorn!" Dirk announced. A long golden horn appeared on the Minotaur's helmet. Electricity suddenly began shooting from the horn to the axe. "This card raises my Battle Ox's ATK to 2400, which is 400 points stronger than your wimpy elf! Plus my Ox allows all Beast, Beast-Warrior, and Winged-Beast type monsters to pierce my opponent's defenses and inflict damage, and that includes my Ox himself!"

"So I guess you use a Beast and Beast-Warrior deck." Tamao said with a bored expression. "Just the deck that I'd expect a big dumb ape like you to use."

"Shut up! Battle Ox, decapitate that elf!" Dirk commanded. "Axe Crusher!"

The Battle Ox charged forward and with one swing of his axe cut the head of the Mystical Elf clean off. Tamao only yawned with boredom as her life points dropped to 3300.

"I activate my facedown card, Call to the rear guard!" Tamao announced. "When I have no monsters on my side of the field, I can Special Summon as many monsters I can from my hand to my Spell/Trap Zones! So I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior and Maiden of Macabre to the field!"

In a flash, a warrior in red armor, red cape, and red pointed helmet, and a blue-skinned woman in a kimono and carrying a scythe appeared on the field. The Orichalcos symbol appeared on both their foreheads and their eyes began to glow red.

"Hey, wait a minute! You can't summon monsters to your Spell/Trap Zones!" Dirk complained.

"Oh, didn't I mention? The Seal of Orichalcos allows me to use my Spell/Trap Zones as Monster Card Zones." Tamao said with a sinister smile. "So I can summon ten monsters if need be."

"Fine, summon all the monsters you want! None of them can stand up to my Battle Ox, even with the extra power from your little magic circle!" Dirk boasted. "I end my turn!"

"First I activate Pot of Greed and draw two more cards!" Tamao announced after drawing her next card. "Then I activate Dian Keto the Cure master to increase my life points by 1000!"

Sparkling lights briefly showered Tamao as her life points rose to 4300.

"You can increase your life points all you like! In the end you'll end up with zero!" Dirk taunted. Tamao ignored Dirk's blustering.

"Finally I summon Orichalcos Mage in Attack Mode!" Tamao announced.

Appearing on the field was a short monster in green robes and blue armor, which included a hood that made the wizard's face impossible to see. Its eyes flashed to a glowing red though a moment after it appeared on the field.

"You summoned that thing in Attack Mode?" Dirk laughed. "That thing originally only has 800 ATK points, so even with your circle its ATK is only 1300!"

"True, but my Mage also gains 500 ATK points for every Spell card in my Graveyard, meaning it actually has 2800 ATK." Tamao added.

"Wait, what?" Dirk asked becoming shocked by the effect of Tamao's monster.

"Orichalcos Mage, attack Battle Ox!" Tamao commanded. "Dark Seal Spell!"

Green lightning from the seal went into the green orb in the Mage's staff, and with a wave of his, the Mage fired the energy at the Battle Ox. The Minotaur was destroyed in an explosion of green light, and Dirk's life points fell to 3600.

"You're wide open to a direct attack, and the total ATK of my two monsters is more than enough to finish you off." Tamao pointed out. "Breaker and Maiden of Macabre, attack this ape directly!"

With one slash of Breaker's sword and the Maiden's scythe, Dirk's life points dropped to zero. Tamao's monsters vanished, but The Seal of Orichalcos remained. Suddenly the seal began to shrink and change position, closing around Dirk.

"W-what's going on?" Dirk asked as he started to become terrified.

"Oh, I forgot to mention that the end of a duel, The Seal of Orichalcos extracts the soul of the one who loses." Tamao said with an innocent smile.

The seal stopped shrinking when it was around Dirk's feet, and a pillar of green light shot up into the air for a moment before the seal vanished. Dirk's body fell to the ground. His body was still alive, but there was no soul, only an empty shell. As a final indignity, the number on Dirk's point counter dropped to forty-five. At the same time, the number on Tamao's counter went from five to fifty.

"Well, it seems like I'm now half way to the finals." Tamao noted as she looked at her Seal of Orichalcos card. A picture of Dirk trapped behind the seal appeared on the card. "Jane, Tomoyo, you can both go back to your room. Mika, Hiyori, and I can handle this."

Both Tomoyo and Jane nodded before heading back to the dorms. Meanwhile the other three girls headed back to Miator's basement.

"Hey, shouldn't we do something about that 'thing'?" Mika asked as she looked back at Dirk's soulless body.

"Oh just leave it." Tamao replied. "Someone will run across it eventually."

A few minutes later, Tamao, Mika, and Hiyori arrived back at the basement lab. Tamao went over to the device that contained mural fragment and held up the Orichalcos card. A green light flew out of the card and into a panel on the top part of the device, and a moment later a picture of Dirk was carved into the plate. Tamao's Seal of Orichalcos card once again showed only the seal itself.

"The darkness from that duelist's heart should greatly speed up the Great Leviathan's resurrection." Hiyori observed.

"That guy probably has darkness to spare since he tried beating up two defenseless girls." Mika added. "Not that I'd call Tomoyo defenseless. She probably could've put him in a body cast."

"The gathering of human souls." Tamao said as she looked at the mural fragment, ignoring Mika's comment. "That was how old King Dartz first resurrected The Great Leviathan. Very effective but inefficient, it took him about 10,000 years to collect enough souls. Our methods can accomplish the task much faster. Still, a few human souls won't hurt matters."

"So how long will it take to bring back the Leviathan now?" Mika asked.

"I'll let Hiyori handle the calculations, but it shouldn't be much longer." Tamao answered, finally turning to face her two underlings. "Soon we will be able to destroy this unfair world and build a new one."

"A world where you shall be queen." Hiyori added.

"Perhaps my dear Hiyori." Tamao said with a smile. "I'm not in this to rule the world. I'm just trying to make it right."

"Regardless, we shall follow you." Hiyori replied.

"That's right! We all believe in the world you want to create!" Mika added. "And we'll do whatever it takes to make it happen!"

"And that I greatly appreciate." Tamao replied.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I decided to make up some new cards for Tamao to use. I didn't want her to just reuse the cards used by Dartz. That doesn't show any originality. There will actually be a lot of made up cards in this story, as you'll soon find out.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	7. Mika the Ruthless

**Author's Note:** I recently finished a big project, so I should have a little more free time for this story. To celebrate I'm going to add the next two chapters, already completed and edited.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 6: Mika the Ruthless

The fourth day of the tournament had come. The number of competitors had already shrunk a good deal. The weak duelists had been eliminated. The ones that were left were those who actually stood a fighting chance at reaching the finals. The real battle had finally begun. That day, Jaden was continuing his search for another opponent. Unfortunately, he was having no better luck at finding one than the day before. There were still quite a few competitors who were afraid to face him, even among the pro duelists.

There was one person whom Jaden did want to duel before the finals, Dirk Peters. Normally Jaden didn't duel for revenge, but he couldn't let the stuff that Dirk had said about the girls of Astraea Island stand. Jaden wanted to put the arrogant duelist in his place, and he decided that today was the day to do it. Unfortunately Jaden was having a difficult time finding Dirk. He had searched a good chunk of the island and found no trace. Jaden did end up finding someone else though.

"Hey Striker!" Jaden called, getting the spiky haired duelist's attention.

"Oh, hi Jaden." Striker greeted back. "What brings you to my territory?"

"I've actually been looking for that guy Dirk Peters." Jaden answered. "No one else seems to want to duel me, and I think it's time someone taught that guy a lesson."

"I've been looking for Peters too." Striker replied. "Unfortunately I haven't been having much luck either. In fact I've asked around and nobody's seen him all day."

"If you're both looking for Dirk Peters, you won't find him out here." A voice suddenly interrupted. "Mr. Peters is in Miator's infirmary right now."

Jaden and Striker turned to find that the one speaking to them was Amane. The blue haired tomboy was wearing her horse-riding outfit, indicating that she was out for a ride. Naturally Hikari was with her.

"What happened to Peters?" Striker asked sounding surprised by the news that Amane had told them.

"The groundskeeper found him out cold near the dorms." Amane answered. "The doctors say he's in a coma, though they don't know what's caused it."

"That's too bad. I really wanted to teach that guy a lesson." Striker replied.

Jaden didn't really hear Striker's comment. He found the news of Dirk being in a coma to be very suspicious. Between the odd dream he had his first night on the island, the disturbing changes at Miator, the strange vibe he was getting from Tamao, and this new news about Dirk, Jaden became even more convinced that something very bad was happening on the island.

"It's probably just as well." Amane added. "There've been complaints about Peters from some of the students, stuff about him making a few unwanted advances. The teachers were talking about throwing him off the island."

"Woah, Peters sounds like an even bigger piece of slime than I thought!" Striker exclaimed. "Well, at least he's no longer a problem, right Jaden?"

Jaden was just about to answer, when Winged Kuriboh appeared in front of him making a fuss.

"Winged Kuriboh? What's wrong buddy?" Jaden asked, giving the Duel Monster his full attention.

"Jaden, who're you talking to?" Striker asked with a raised eyebrow. He was after all, unable to see Winged Kuriboh. Jaden didn't respond to Striker though. Winged Kuriboh suddenly took off, and Jaden began running after him. "Hey, wait up!"

As Jaden and Striker ran off after the Duel Monster spirit, Hikari and Amane looked at each other for a moment, and after exchanging a nod decided to follow the two duelists. Along the way, Jaden and the others ran into Jessie, who was following Ruby Carbuncle. Apparently both Duel Monsters were sensing the same thing. The two spirits stopped at the top of the hill overlooking a small clearing. Jaden and the others got to the top just in time to see a large explosion.

When the smoke cleared, Jaden could see a raven-haired Spica student slumped on the ground in defeat. They recognized the girl as Yaya Nanto, Hikari's friend and former roommate. Standing behind Yaya on the sidelines was Tsubomi, who also happened to be Yaya's girlfriend. On the other side of the battlefield stood a tall Miator student with short purple hair. The girl had a tomboyish look about her. She did not look as masculine as Amane, especially with the long skirt that Miator uniforms were known to have, but she did seem capable of passing for a boy, albeit a rather feminine looking one.

"Four days into the tournament and you only won ten points. And here I thought that all the weaklings were knocked out by now." The purple haired girl said with an arrogant sneer.

It took a few moments for Jaden to remember who the purple haired girl was. He finally recalled that she was Mika Yamato, a member of Tamao's student council, the group that was known around the island as the Four Witches. Mika glanced to her right and noticed that Jaden and the others were watching her.

"Well, well, it looks like we have an audience." Mika said to the small group on the hill. "You just missed seeing me wipe the floor with another Spica weakling."

At that moment, Tsubomi ran over to Yaya to comfort her.

"Well that doesn't surprise me. I thought pinky there was your girlfriend. She's probably the reason why you lost, just another distraction." Mika said as she glanced back at Yaya. Mika then turned back to look at the group on the hill and noticed who one of the members of the group was. "But than look who I'm talking to, the once great Amane Ohtori. You're even more pathetic than that girl I just beat."

"What're you talking about?" Hikari asked angrily. "Amane is one of the strongest duelists there is!"

"She was until she teamed up with a weakling like you." Mika replied with an arrogant smile. "Ohtori was on the path to the pros, but then she met you and went soft."

"T-that's not true!" Hikari shouted, starting to tear up a little.

"Listen up blondie! A truly strong duelist doesn't allow any distractions!" Mika responded. "Family, relationships, all they do is distract duelists and make them weak! Only by blocking out such distractions and standing alone can a duelist become strong!"

"You're wrong! Hikari has made me far stronger than I once was!" Amane angrily replied.

"Well then why don't you prove it by dueling me right now?" Mika offered. "Oh that's right, you aren't allowed to play in this tournament because of your position as Etoile. Rather convenient excuse, really."

Having enough of hearing his friends be insulted, Jaden began to step down the hill towards Mika.

"If you want to duel someone, duel me!" Jaden said with a calm but angry expression.

"You're that Jaden Yuki guy, right?" Mika asked. "They say you're pretty strong, but I saw your duel at the opening banquet and I wasn't impressed. Still, you've got me intrigued. How many points do you have?"

"Twenty." Jaden replied, narrowing his eyes at Mika.

"Only twenty?" Mika asked with an amused expression.

"What can I say? A lot of people seem afraid to face me." Jaden answered.

"I guess I can understand that. A lot of the duelists here seem afraid of me too." Mika chuckled. "It just goes to show you that there are a lot of weaklings still in this tournament. Anyway, I have twenty-five points now after beating that Spica wimp, and after I beat you it'll be thirty."

"Jaden wait! You don't know what you're up against!" Yaya interrupted. "Mika's cards are…"

"Shut up wimp!" Mika yelled, cutting Yaya off. "This is between me and your friend. So what do you say Yuki? Still want to take me on?"

"Game on!" Jaden replied.

A few moments later, the rest of the group had gathered near Yaya and Tsubomi on the sidelines while Jaden and Mika prepared to face each other on the battlefield.

"Jaden shouldn't have challenged Mika." Yaya said quietly.

"Why, what kind of deck does Mika use?" Striker asked.

"Whatever deck she uses, Jaden will beat her!" Jessie declared, interrupting Yaya.

With the life points of the duelists set to 4000, the duel began.

"Ladies first!" Mika said as she drew her first card. "First I summon Blast Magician in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the field was a young grey-haired wizard in black carrying two staffs. One staff was adorned with a large red orb, while the other had a similar green orb on the end.

"I set one card on the field and end my turn!" Mika announced. Jaden drew his first card.

"It looks like Mika uses an ordinary Spellcaster deck to me." Striker said with a raised eyebrow. "I don't get what's so terrible about it."

"Don't be fooled!" Tsubomi told Striker. "Her deck may seem innocent, but it has some powerful cards!"

"Her cards… are evil!" Yaya added shaking a little as she remembered the card that Mika used to defeat her.

At that point, Jessie saw Ruby Carbuncle reappear in front of him. The small spirit was growling at something in Mika's hand. Jessie began to suspect that Mika did indeed have some terrible cards in her possession. Meanwhile, Jaden was beginning his turn.

"First I activate E-Emergency Call to add Elemental Hero Burstinatrix to my hand!" Jaden announced. "Next I activate Polymerization and fuse Avian and Burstinatrix in my hand to summon Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!"

In an instant, the grey skinned lady warrior of fire and the green suited winged warrior briefly appeared on the field before merging into Jaden's dragonhead armed hero.

"Flame Wingman, attack Blast Magician!" Jaden commanded. "Flame Shoot!"

"I activate my Trap, Negate Attack!" Mika announced.

The fireball that Flame Wingman shot from his dragonhead arm was sucked into a vortex that appeared in front of Mika's magician.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced, seeing that there was nothing more he could do. As Mika drew her next card, Jaden noticed a rather sinister smile on her face.

"You're about to witness the arrival of my strongest monster!" Mika declared. "First I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the field was a blue skinned wizard clad in red armor. It was a monster that Jaden was quite familiar with.

"THAT"S your ultimate monster?" Jaden asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Breaker is just reinforcements." Mika replied. "My strongest monster won't show up until I play one more card. So now I activate Orichalcos Ritual!"

Appearing on the ground around Flame Wingman and Blast Magician was a large green mystical circle. Its design was similar in a way to The Seal of Orichalcos, but also quite different. It was a ring connected together at four points by smaller circles, which were positioned like the points of a compass. From the four circles at these points of the ring ran four lines that formed a diamond, and from the four points of the diamond went four lines that lead to a slightly larger circle that contained a unicursal hexagram. Right away, Jaden sensed something evil about the card that Mika had just played.

"Orichalcos Ritual is no ordinary Ritual Spell." Mika said with a fiendish smile. "It lets me use monsters on both sides of the field a sacrifices for the Ritual monster I wish to summon!"

"Wait, a Ritual Spell that lets you sacrifice your opponent's monsters?" Striker exclaimed from the sidelines.

"I told you her cards were evil." Yaya responded.

"Don't look so shocked Yuki." Mika said to Jaden back in the duel. "After all, you have a card that lets you use your opponent's monsters for Fusions. This card is no different. I now offer up my Blast Magician and your Flame Wingman as sacrifices for the Ritual!"

From the lines that formed the circle shot bolts of lightning that began disintegrating both monsters bit by bit. The two monsters screamed in pain as they were slowly being deconstructed. It was truly horrible sight to behold. At last there was nothing left of the two monsters, and Mika was able to summon her strongest monster.

"Come forth, Dark Orc of the West!" Mika commanded as she placed the card in her duel disk.

In place of the circle that consumed the two sacrifices, a pillar of black fire shot into the sky. The pillar quickly vanished and in its place stood a large ogre-like creature with dark-grey skin, large yellow fangs, and glowing red eyes. The orc was covered in dark armor, and in his right claw he carried a large spiked club. With the appearance of Mika's dark orc, Breaker suddenly transformed. The wizard's skin turned from blue to dark-grey. He swelled up and became more muscular, and yellow fangs protruded from his mouth. Breaker's eyes were also glowing bright red.

"What happened to Breaker?" Jaden asked with a startled expression.

"Oh yeah, when my Dark Orc is on the field, all my monsters become Fiends." Mika replied. "Meaning that Breaker is now an orc too."

Jaden quickly noticed that Mika's eyes were glowing red. It was clear that the cards that Mika had played weren't normal, and that Jaden was no longer playing a simple duel.

"I also can't conduct my Battle Phase on the turn I play Orichalcos Ritual." Mika continued. "So for now you're safe. I end my turn!"

"First I activate Pot of Greed to draw two more cards!" Jaden announced after he drew another card. "Next I summon Elemental Hero Clayman in Defense Mode!"

Jaden's stone armored hero appeared on the field in a crouched position.

"Next I'll lay down three facedowns and end my turn!" Jaden announced.

"Trying to hide behind a barrier monster and some Traps I see!" Mika said with fiendish glee as she drew her card. "Well it won't work! I activate Breaker's effect and destroy the middle facedown card!"

With a slash of his sword, the orc wizard sent a blade of blue energy that destroyed one of Jaden's Traps. The card that Breaker had destroyed was Hero Signal; meaning Jaden could no longer summon a new Hero to protect himself from a direct attack.

"For my next move I summon Dark Elf in Attack Mode!" Mika announced.

Appearing on the field was a green robed female elf with dark skin and long dark-purple hair. Very quickly though the elf transformed and became more muscular, her skin turned dark-grey and her hair turned white. She grew yellow fangs and her eyes turned bright red.

"Now I activate my Dark Orc's effect!" Mika announced. "Right now he only has 2400 ATK, but by sacrificing another orc, namely my Dark Elf, I can increase his ATK by that ATK of the orc I sacrificed until the end of the turn!"

The Dark Orc suddenly grabbed the female orc by the neck and began draining purple energy from her. Very quickly, the female orc became a withered husk and tuned to dust.

"Now I equip Dark Orc with Fairy Meteor Cruch!" Mika announced. "Now he can inflict damage even if he destroys a Defense Position monster! And before you think about trying to activate a Trap to block Dark Orc's attack, I should tell you that you can't activate Traps when Dark Orc attack's until after the Damage Step!"

"That means that Jaden can't activate Traps until that orc destroys his monster!" Striker exclaimed from the sidelines. "That thing is like one of the legendary God cards!"

"Dark Orc, smash that pathetic Clayman!" Mika commanded. "Soul Breaker Club!"

The Dark Orc raised his massive club in the air and brought it down on Clayman, shattering the hero to bits. The attack knocked Jaden to the ground and also reduced his life points to 1600. Jaden was not at all surprised to find that the damage from the attack was real.

"Hey Yaya, the damage from Mika's Dark Orc is somehow real, isn't it?" Jessie asked.

"Yeah, I'm surprised I can still walk actually." Yaya replied.

"Real damage? What are you guys talking about?" Striker asked.

"Let's just say we've seen this kind of thing before." Jessie replied.

"You too?" Amane asked.

"Trust me, this kind of stuff happens sometimes when you hang out with me and J." Jessie replied.

"You're wide open now." Mika said with a sinister grin. "Plus you've only got 1600 life points left, the exact amount of ATK points that Breaker has. Meaning that once I attack, it's all over!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** So here we have Mika using a couple of made up cards. I didn't want her just using the Seal of Orichalcos. For one thing I want to use Mika in this story more than once. And just having her and the other members of the Four Witches use the seal isn't very original. By the way, the inspiration for the Orichalcos Ritual card came from Fullmetal Alchemist. Not a favorite series of mind, but an okay one.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	8. Eye of the Dragon

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 7: Eye of the Dragon

Jaden was in a tight spot. Mika's Dark Orc of the West had not only destroyed his only defensive monster, but also left him with only 1600 life points, while Mika's 4000 life points were untouched. To make things worse, Mika also had Breaker the Magical Warrior on her side of the field, and Breaker's ATK was the exact amount of life points that Jaden had remaining. The friends of Jaden who were there watching the duel could only wait helplessly as Mika delivered the final blow.

"This is it! Breaker, finish Jaden off!" Mika commanded. "Magic Orc Blade!"

The orc wizard charged at Jaden and raised his sword to deliver the finishing blow.

"I activate my facedown, Negate Attack!" Jaden announced. Breaker's attack was repelled by a vortex that appeared in front of Jaden.

"What, you had Negate Attack?" Mika asked with a mixed tone of shock and irritation.

"I couldn't activate it when your Dark Orc attacked Clayman, but I could still use it to stop a direct attack on Breaker." Jaden explained. "I guess you picked the wrong facedown card to destroy with Breaker's effect, huh?"

"Fine, I end my turn!" Mika announced. "But next turn you're finished!"

"That was a close one." Striker said to the others on the sidelines. "Still, Jaden doesn't stand much chance with that Dark Orc on the field."

"Jaden will find a way." Jessie said reassuringly. "You'll see."

It seemed to Jaden however that there really wasn't much that he could do. He only had one card in his hand and a single Trap card, and it wasn't a card that could block Mika's next attack. His only hope was the top card on his deck. As Jaden reached for that card though, he noticed that it was suddenly glowing with a faint white light. Jaden decided that the only thing to do was draw the card. The moment he touched it though, Jaden found that he was transported somewhere else.

Jaden found himself inside what looked like some sort of large open temple made of white stone. At the center of this temple were three vacant pedestals surrounded by a pool of water. Jaden also noticed that Yubel was standing next to him, but not as a spirit. The humanoid demon appeared to be completely solid, which made Jaden suspect that they were in one of the Duel Monster spirit realms.

"Where are we?" Jaden asked his Duel Monster partner.

"I have a better question." Yubel replied as she pointed to an entryway that lead to a patio. "What the heck is that thing?"

Jaden turned his attention to what Yubel was looking at. Floating in the sky outside of the temple was a gigantic yellow reptilian eye. Several small golden lights were being sucked into the giant eye from all around.

"That is the eye of The Great Leviathan." A voice suddenly said, answering Yubel's question.

Jaden and Yubel turned to see that the voice came from a male warrior wearing light-green armor and a dark-blue cape. What was very surprising to Jaden was that the warrior's face looked almost exactly like the face of Yugi Muto, one of the legendary duelists. The major difference though was that the warrior's right eye was scared shut.

"Who are you?" Jaden asked the warrior.

"I am one of the three knights who fought against The Great Leviathan." The warrior answered. "For quite sometime now we thought that The Great Leviathan was finally destroyed, but it seems that someone is trying to resurrect it once again. Those lights you see are Duel Monsters that are being consumed by the Leviathan to regain strength. If nothing is done soon, it will consume everything of this world, and destroy the world where you come from."

"Why am I here?" Jaden asked the warrior.

"Because right now you fight one of those who are trying to resurrect the Leviathan." The warrior answered.

"You mean Mika?" Jaden asked, to which the warrior nodded.

"You were also brought here because you are the one known as the Supreme King, one of the few who can stand against this evil." The warrior added. "I ask now to fight at your side, so that together we can destroy The Great Leviathan once and for all."

Jaden turned to Yubel to seen what she thought.

"What have we got to lose?" Yubel answered. Jaden turned back to the warrior.

"I'd be glad to have your help." Jaden said as he held out his hand to the warrior.

"I am known as Timaeus." The warrior said as he shook Jaden's hand.

In another flash of white light, Jaden found himself back in the duel with Mika. He had also found that he had already drawn his next card. The card in question depicted a large green dragon. Jaden recognized it as one of the dragons he saw in the dream he had a few nights ago. The card itself was a strange one; the frame color was that of a light blue, indicating that it was not a Spell or Trap card, or any known kind of Monster card. Still, Jaden found that he somehow knew how to use it.

"What's going on? Jaden looked like he was acting a little strange just a second ago." Hikari asked.

"Something must've happened." Jessie answered. "I'm not sure what though."

"First I activate Foolish Burial and send Yubel from my deck to the Graveyard!" Jaden announced. "Next I activate my final facedown card, Limit Reverse! This lets me summon a monster with 1000 or less ATK from my Graveyard, so the card I choose to summon is Yubel!"

Jaden's eyes flashed and changed color, with his right eye glowing orange and his left eye glowing teal. A long shadow stretched out from Jaden's feet onto the battlefield. From the end of the shadow rose a humanoid demon with eyes glowing in the same colors as Jaden's. A third more demonic looking red eye was on the creature's forehead. The skin on its face, parts of its torso, and the bicep of its right upper arm were bright purple, and its lips were light blue. The rest of its torso, waist, and legs were black, along with most of the skin on its upper arms. The bicep of the creature's left arm, along with its lower arms and legs were brown and scaly. On the back of the creature was a pair of large demonic wings, and it had a head of long shaggy hair. The hair on the right side was grey, while the hair on the left side was dark blue.

"That… was kind of a weird summoning." Striker observed.

The others who were watching the duel didn't really hear what Striker had just said though. Nor were they shocked by the way Yubel had appeared on the field, for they were all too familiar with Yubel and her relationship to Jaden.

"How dumb do you think I am?" Mika laughed. "Yubel may have zero ATK, but I know if I try attacking it, I'll take the damage instead! What an amateur move!"

"Don't underestimate Jaden you foolish girl." Yubel said with crossed arms and a confident smile, surprising Mika. "And don't underestimate me either."

"D-did that monster just talk?" Striker asked sounding shocked. Again he was ignored, for the others were not at all surprised to hear Yubel speak.

"Next I play The Eye of Timaeus!" Jaden announced. A huge twister blow onto the field and quickly vanished to reveal a gigantic winged dragon with green scales. A scar ran vertical through the dragon's right eye. "Now I combine Timaeus with Yubel!"

Timaeus and Yubel began to merge, causing a small explosion. The smoke cleared, revealing a dragon that was slightly larger than Timaeus, and far more intimidating. The new dragon's eyes glowed the same orange and teal colors as Jaden's and Yubel's. The scales of the dragon's snout and the inside of its wings were purple, while it's underbelly and lower legs were brown. The rest of the dragon's body was black. On the dragon's head were a pair of large curved horns and a main of shaggy grey and dark blue hair. The new dragon roared, causing both Breaker the Magical Warrior and even the Dark Orc to flinch in terror.

"Say hello to Phantom Pain Dragon!" Jaden announced.

"So what?" Mika huffed. "That dragon may be big, but it still has zero ATK."

"True, but when Phantom Pain Dragon battles another monster, that monster gets destroyed instead and my opponent takes the damage." Jaden explained. "Plus Phantom Pain Dragon can attack all of my opponent's monsters at once."

"Wait, what?" Mika exclaimed.

"Fry her monsters Phantom Pain Dragon!" Jaden commanded. "Backlash Inferno!"

Phantom Pain Dragon reared back its head and shot a firestorm of purple flames that covered the entire side of Mika's field. When the flames had cleared, there was nothing left of Mika's two monsters. Not only that, Mika's life points had dropped from 4000 to zero. The number on Mika's point counter had dropped from twenty-five to twenty, while Jaden's points went from twenty to twenty-five. Phantom Pain Dragon vanished, and Mika suddenly dropped to her knees and started coughing. A moment later, Yubel reappeared next to Jaden in spirit form.

"Hey Yubel, is Mika okay?" Jaden asked.

"Right now Mika is experiencing an illusion of pain." Yubel answered. "I bet she even thinks she's coughing up blood right now. It'll wear off after a good night's sleep though."

"You… may have… won this duel." Mika coughed as she slowly got back up. "But now… you've made a powerful group… of enemies. The Four Witches… will be after you now."

With that, Mika managed to quickly stagger away, stopping every now and then to cough more. At that moment, Timaeus appeared next to Jaden in his knight form.

"Thanks for the help Timaeus." Jaden said to the knight. "But how come you were a dragon when I used you in that duel?"

"I cannot appear in a duel in my true form unless a certain card is played." Timaeus answered. "That is not important at the moment though. Right now I have much to tell you about what you're facing."

* * *

A little later at the meeting hall of Miator's student council, Tamao and the other members of the Four Witches were waiting for Mika to show up. Tamao had already gotten word of Mika's defeat to Jaden, and she was not pleased. The members of the Four Witches who were there could see from Tamao's stern expression that she was indeed not happy. At last, Mika staggered into the room, coughing and holding her left side. Hiyori looked at Mika with an expression of concern as she watched her slump into her chair at the student council table.

"So nice of you to finally join us Mika." Tamao said calmly, but with a hint of anger. "What is this news I hear about you losing a duel to Jaden Yuki?"

"I'm… sorry Lady Tamao." Mika coughed out.

"I gave you two of the most powerful cards ever to be created, so tell me how it possible that you could've lost?" Tamao asked, her voice showing more anger.

"It… it wasn't my fault." Mika coughed. "Yuki used… some kind of weird card."

"And just what was this weird card Mika? Some kind of mystical sword?" Tamao asked standing up from her chair.

The mention of a strange card made Tamao remember the story of the card Jaden used to destroy the combined form of the Wicked Gods, and how the card was awakened by Shizuma and Nagisa's love. That story had caused Tamao's anger to increase.

"No, the card Jaden Yuki used was some kind of dragon card." Mika answered. "The Eye of Timaeus."

"The… Eye of Timaeus?" Tamao asked, her expression changing to one of utter shock. "Are you sure that's what it's called?"

"Positive." Mika coughed.

"This meeting is adjourned." Tamao declared as she started walking out of the room.

"Lady Tamao, Mika doesn't look well." Hiyori said as she suddenly stood up from her chair. "Perhaps she should be taken to the infirmary."

Tamao stopped and glanced back at Mika.

"The pain that Mika is feeling is most likely an illusion created by the card that Jaden Yuki used to defeat her." Tamao said coldly. "It should wear off after awhile. Just take her back to her room."

"Yes my lady." Hiyori said as she sat back down.

Tamao continued walking out of the room and headed towards the dorms. As she walked, she kept thinking about what Mika had told her. Somehow Jaden had gotten a hold of one of the cards used to defeat King Dartz and destroy The Great Leviathan all those years ago. Tamao started to remember the last time that Jaden Yuki had interfered with her life, and her relationship with Nagaisa. Though Tamao had long ago realized that she had no chance with Nagisa. Still, Tamao would not allow Jaden to meddle in her affairs again, not when she was so close to remaking the world. One way or another, Jaden Yuki had to be eliminated.

* * *

**Author's Note:** One of the most fun things about this story is making up more cards created using the Legendary Dragons. Phantom Pain Dragon turned out to be pretty overpowered, so I doubt you'll see it again in this story.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	9. One Ring to Rule Them All

**Author's Note:** The title of this chapter is of course an obvious Tolkien reference. The Lord of the Rings was actually a pretty big inspiration for this story. This chapter takes a break from the dueling action and goes into some exposition. It does recap the Waking the Dragons (Doma) arc of the original Yu-Gi-Oh! anime a bit. But I didn't see any way around that. This chapter also covers a little of what happened between the prologue and the first chapter. Not everything, but a little.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 8: One Ring to Rule Them All

Jaden entered his room at the head mistress's guesthouse and flopped down onto the bed. He had an exhausting afternoon. Earlier he had faced Mika Yamato, one of the Four Witches of Miator. He had also found out that two of Mika's cards, Orichalcos Ritual and Dark Orc of the West were not normal cards. Not only that, Jaden found out that Mika and perhaps the rest of Miator's student council was somehow involved with the resurrection of an evil creature called The Great Leviathan. There was also a Duel Monster spirit named Timaeus who wanted to help Jaden stop this creature.

One of the things that Jaden couldn't understand was how Tamao could be involved with resurrecting The Great Leviathan. Jaden knew Tamao from the first time he was on the island. She was a nice gentle girl, though Jaden did find some of her behavior a little strange. He thought that Tamao had become obsessed with Nagisa Aoi, the other girl that he befriended the last time he was on the island. Still, Jaden found it hard to believe that Tamao could be behind something so sinister. Although he couldn't deny the strange vibes he had been getting from her, and she was the leader of Miator's student council. It was still a little hard for Jaden to believe though. Jaden's cat Pharaoh jumped up on the bed and yawned, allowing the spirit of Lyman Banner to emerge.

"You look like you've had a rough day." The spectral teacher observed. "Is the tournament not going well?"

"Let's just say that the tournament's not as fun as I was hoping it would be." Jaden sighed.

At that point there was a knock on the door. Jaden got up and opened the door to find that it was Jessie.

"Hi J., mind if I come in?" Jessie asked.

"I was kind of expecting you." Jaden replied. "Come on in."

Jessie entered the room and quickly noticed Banner. Banner was a spirit after all, and Jessie was one of those who could see spirits.

"Ah, Jessie Anderson. Nice to see you again." Banner greeted enthusiastically.

"Oh, hi Mr. Banner." Jessie greeted back.

"I'm guessing you're here to talk to me about the duel." Jaden assumed.

"Not just the duel." Jessie replied. "Who was that guy with the one eye who showed up afterward. I mean I know he was a spirit, but just who is he?"

"Oh, that was Timaeus." Jaden replied.

"Timaeus? Isn't that the name of that dragon you summoned in the duel?" Jessie asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, that knight you saw is apparently what Timaeus really looks like." Jaden replied.

"Why does he look like Yugi Muto?" Jessie asked.

"I'm still trying to figure that out." Jaden replied.

"Your questions will be answered now Jaden Yuki." A voice suddenly said. In moments, Timaeus appeared in the room in his knight form. He looked around the room and noticed Jessie and Banner. "Who are your companions?"

"Oh these are my friends Jessie Anderson and Lyman Banner." Jaden introduced.

"Very well." Timaeus replied. "It is now time that I tell you about what danger you now face."

"You mean that Great Leviathan thing you mentioned?" Jaden asked.

"Great what?" Jessie asked, still not understanding what was going on.

"It will take some time to explain." Timaeus began. "It all started 10,000 years ago in what you would call the lost city of Atlantis. Atlantis was a paradise, isolated from the rest of the world. The people of the lost city knew nothing of war. It was a place where humans and the spirits that you now call Duel Monsters lived in harmony. In the end however, that harmony was shattered, and paradise fell.

"It all began when a volcano erupted and caused strange stones to shower down on the city. These stones became known as the Orichalcos, and they brought the people of the lost city great knowledge and power. Very quickly, the technology of Atlantis had advanced centuries beyond that of the rest of the world. It was also a short time before the people of Atlantis became corrupt. The Orichalcos stones were bringing out the darkness within the hearts of the people until they transformed and became as hideous on the outside as they had become on the inside. They became monsters and started rampaging through the city. It was at that point that King Dartz began to lose his mind."

"Wait, did you say Dartz?" Jaden interrupted.

"Does the name sound familiar to you?" Timaeus asked.

"A few nights ago I had this weird dream where a guy named Dartz was fighting this big battle with a guy named Ironheart." Jaden replied. "I guess you were in it to Timaeus, only you were that green dragon we saw you as in the duel with Mika."

"You had a vision about the ancient battle of Atlantis." Timaeus replied. "The battle in your dream actually took place, and it all started with Dartz. Among those who had been transformed by the Orichalcos was Dartz's wife, Queen Iona. Dartz had no choice but to kill her. With his wife dead and his kingdom in ruins, Dartz fell into despair and asked himself how such a mighty civilization could fall. Ignorant of the true cause of the kingdom's downfall, Dartz turned to the Orichalcos for answers.

"The Orichalcos told Dartz that the human race was inherently evil and needed to be erased. It also told Dartz of the way to accomplish that task, by awakening The Great Leviathan, a terrible sea serpent with the power to obliterate all life on the planet. So Dartz began his quest to wipe out the human race. The one man who stood against Dartz was his father the former king, Ironheart. Ironheart had realized that it was the Orichalcos that was responsible for the destruction of the kingdom, and that it had corrupted Dartz's mind. So he called upon an army of Duel Monsters to fight against Dartz's army of evil.

"My two brothers and I, fellow knights, were among those called upon to fight Dartz. We three alone had the power to stand against the evil of the Orichalcos. Unfortunately, Dartz was able to use that power to weaken us and curse us into the forms of dragons. As dragons we had lost some of our powers, but we were still able to fight. We were still the strongest warriors that Ironheart had."

"So… I'm guessing that you guys won the battle, since we're all here 10,000 years later." Jessie interrupted.

"Unfortunately no Jessie Anderson." Timaeus replied gravely. "The ancient battle of Atlantis was a draw, neither side won. The Great Leviathan was gravely wounded, and my two brothers and I were frozen in time, sealed in crystal. With the battle over, Dartz began a new quest to collect human souls to revive The Great Leviathan. The Orichalcos had given Dartz unnaturally long life, allowing him to live for 10,000 years and collect many souls. There was one soul that was key to reviving the Leviathan however, the soul of the once nameless pharaoh."

"You mean the spirit of Yugi's Millennium Puzzle!" Jaden exclaimed. Timaeus nodded.

"Sometime after Yugi Muto had completed the Millennium Puzzle and revived the soul of the Pharaoh, Dartz decided that the time was right to finally revive The Great Leviathan." Timaeus continued. "It was then that both Yugi Muto and the Pharaoh were called upon to release me from the crystal. Soon after, Yugi's companions Seto Kaiba and Joey Wheeler were called upon to release my brothers, and together we fought against Dartz. It was a long and difficult battle. At one point the Pharaoh came face to face with the darkness of his own heart. In the end however, the Pharaoh triumphed and defeated Dartz, purging the evil of the Orichalcos from him in the process. At the same time, The Great Leviathan was destroyed, and we three knights were returned to our true forms. The war of Atlantis had finally come to an end."

"Hold on, if Dartz is gone and the war of Atlantis is over, then who is tying to bring back The Great Leviathan?" Jaden asked.

"That I do not know." Timaeus answered. "But the Leviathan has been revived, there is no mistake about that. A few months ago a shadow fell over my world, and now only recently has the Leviathan retuned. Again it has come back as the lidless eye that now consumes all spirits it can find."

"But who could be bringing it back?" Jessie asked. "Dartz is gone, so who does that leave?"

"It can only be someone who has an Orichalcos stone." Timaeus answered. "That is the only way that someone could be resurrecting the Leviathan. It was thought that the stones were all destroyed when the Pharaoh triumphed against Dartz, but it seems that at least one has survived."

"If it is an Orichalcos stone, than it must have come from the ruins from Atlantis." Banner theorized.

"But what would the stone be doing here?" Jessie asked.

"That question I cannot answer Jessie Anderson." Timaeus replied. "All I do know is that the stone and whoever is using it is here on this island. Only the power of the Orichalcos could've created the cards that Jaden Yuki's opponent used in his last duel."

"Isn't that girl Mika part of Miator's student council J.?" Jessie asked.

"Yeah, and she also said that the other members of the council would be coming after me." Jaden answered. "Still, I find it hard to believe that the student council president of Miator could be behind this. I know the girl, and I can't believe that she could do anything so evil."

"The Orichalcos corrupts those who use it Jaden Yuki." Timaeus said gravely. "Even the Pharaoh became corrupted by it for a time."

"Well whoever's behind this, it looks like we have to stop them." Jessie declared.

"Yeah." Jaden agreed. "And we might not have much time to do it."

* * *

Meanwhile in the Strawberry Dorms, Tamao was in her room trying to figure out what to do about Jaden. He had become a serious threat to her plans now that he had The Eye of Timaeus. Lying on her bed, Tamao brought up her left hand and looked at the Orichalcos stone ring that she wore. It still amazed her that such a simple gift from her father had changed her life so completely. She could remember the day she had received the ring so clearly.

The moment that Tamao slipped on the ring and took possession of The Seal of Orichalcos, she felt different. She began to see the world in a different light. Tamao did not think that the human race was inherently evil, but she did see that the world was unfair in a way. The unfairness lied in how some people went through life alone, while others had the company of friends and loved ones. Why should some go through life alone while other didn't have to? It also occurred to her that things like love and even simple friendship usually only end up hurting people. True love in reality was only a fairytale. The reality of the world was that love usually causes pain and heartbreak.

It was these realizations that allowed Tamao to move on after Nagisa had left. Though she did want to correct the world in some way, but at that time she had no idea how. Tamao never took off the ring after that moment when she slipped it on. It was precious to her, for it had shown her the truth about the world. But that was not the only thing that the ring would show her.

Soon after putting on the ring, Tamao found that she had somehow become smarter. Answers to the most difficult questions on homework assignments and exams seemed to come to her instantly. Tamao also started having very vivid dreams when she slept, dreams about the war of Atlantis and of Dartz's quest to revive The Great Leviathan. Somehow she knew that the dreams were from the ring, and that they had actually happened. Soon Tamao figured out how she could make the world fair and rid it of the pain of love.

It was very simple, the world needed to be destroyed and remade again. And of course there was only one way to do that, resurrect The Great Leviathan. Tamao already had one of the things she needed to do that, the mural piece that her father had sent with the ring. That fragment was the only piece left of the Leviathan that had survived the final battle with the nameless pharaoh. All she needed to do was figure out a way to resurrect it from that small chunk of rock.

One day as Tamao was working on her plans to revive the Leviathan, she found herself doodling a picture of a small hooded magician. When she had finished, the stone on the ring suddenly flashed, and from the drawing it created a new card, Tamao's Orichalcos Mage. Once Tamao realized that she could use the ring to create new cards, she used it to make several new cards for her deck. Around that same time Tamao decided that she would need help in her quest, so she also created a special set of cards.

The first card of this set was the Orichalcos Ritual card, a spell that used the energy of the Orichalcos to call forth a powerful Ritual monster. But the Spell was not created for just one Ritual monster, but four. Each of these four monsters had but one purpose, to bring out the darkness within their wielders. Once brought out, Tamao could use that darkness for the Leviathan's resurrection. All that was needed was to select those who were best suited to wield the cards.

As part of the first phase of her plan, Tamao ran for the position of Miator's student council president. Once she won, she was able to select wielders for the four Ritual monsters as members of her student council. Right away Tamao had found the four wielders who would be perfect. Each one of them was a transfer student from another academy. It turned out to be quite easy for Tamao to recruit them.

The first of the four was Jane Hawthorn, the transfer student from an academy in England. Like Tamao, Jane had been in love with someone and greatly hurt by that person. The reason why Jane had transferred to Miator was in order to escape from that pain. At first Jane was very reluctant to trust Tamao, but very soon she agreed to become a member of the student council. The world that Tamao wished to create was very appealing to Jane.

Tamao's second recruit was Tomoyo Mikage. From what Tamao could find out, Tomoyo was known at her last academy as a cold emotionless duelist who mercilessly crushed any opponent that she faced. Tamao did not know the reason why Tomoyo had agreed to join her cause, but it didn't really matter. All that concerned Tamao was that she had another wielder that could help resurrect The Great Leviathan. Several times Tomoyo had proven to be quite a powerful member of Tamao's team.

The third wielder Tamao had selected was Hiyori Sonoda. Hiyori had a genius scientific mind that never allowed emotions to interfere with her work. At first Hiyori was very skeptical about how Tamao would go about remaking the world. But after a demonstration of her power, Tamao had convinced Hiyori to join her. Hiyori was very helpful in creating the psychic collector that would be used to revive the Leviathan, though she was even more useful in wielding one of the four Ritual monsters.

Mika was the last person Tamao had recruited into her circle. It was rather easy for Tamao to get Mika to join her cause, as Mika was one of those who believed that relationships of any kind made a person weak. So the world that Tamao wished to create seemed like Mika's ideal world, a world without weakness. At last Tamao had formed her student council. The first phase of her plan had been completed.

With her new student council established, Tamao quickly began changing the way Miator was run. All of her changes were intended to push Miator's students to their limits and bring out their darkest emotions. As time went on, Tamao came closer and closer to reviving the Leviathan. Now that the Astraea Star Cup tournament had finally begun, the Leviathan's revival was not long to come. Things were going just as Tamao planed, or at least they had been.

When Tamao first heard that Jaden Yuki was going to be in the tournament, she was surprised but did not consider him to be a threat. Though Tamao didn't blame Jaden for Nagisa leaving her for Shizuma, she didn't much like having him back of the island. For he served as a reminder of how Nagisa had left her. The story of Jaden using a card awakened by Shizuma and Nagisa's love to destroy an evil god had already become a legend on the island. That legend too served as a cruel reminder of the way things turned out.

Still, Jaden was not a threat to Tamao's plans, but it seemed that all that had changed. Somehow, Jaden had gotten a hold of The Eye of Timaeus, one of the few cards that could possibly destroy The Great Leviathan. At last Tamao got up from her bed and decided on a plan of action. Jaden needed to be eliminated from the tournament and removed from the island. One way or another, Tamao would make sure that her plan would succeed.

* * *

**Author's Note:** It was at this point when I ended up dropping the story. It wasn't intentional though. I had finished the chapter in the middle of November, and I decided to take a break from it because of the holidays. But then in January I got the idea for a Digimon story that I really wanted to do, and that idea turned into a series. So as a result I ended up dropping the story. Now I'm trying to get it back up and running. I'm not sure how often I'll work on it, since I have another story going right now, plus ideas for a few more. I am going to try and finish it though, but how fast I do it will depend on how popular this story becomes. So I'll update it when I update it I guess.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	10. Tomoyo the Assassin

**Author's Note:** After months of being on hiatus because of another project, I've finally written another chapter of this story. It turned out to be easier to get back to than I thought.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 9: Tomoyo the Assassin

The fifth day of the tournament had arrived. That morning Tamao and the Four Witches were having an emergency meeting. Jaden acquiring The Eye of Timaeus had caused some very unexpected problems for Tamao's plans. As a result, Jaden had become a very serious threat, one that needed to be dealt with immediately. There had been some debate over the problem. Mika wanted a rematch with Jaden, but Tamao had come to a decision.

"Tomoyo, you will eliminate Jaden Yuki from the tournament." Tamao commanded.

"But Lady Tamao, I know I can beat him! Give me another chance!" Mika demanded as she stood up from her chair.

"I believe one failure is quite enough for us." Tamao said coldly. "We cannot afford to let revenge cloud our judgment. Tomoyo shall eliminate Jaden, end of discussion."

Mika sat back down with a look of irritation on her face.

"Do not fail me Tomoyo." Tamao said to her underling.

Tomoyo nodded and then got up and left to hunt down Jaden.

* * *

Later on another part of the island, Jaden was observing a duel between a Miator student and a Spica student. He did not know whom either of them was, but he had taken an interest in the duel because of the Miator student's very aggressive playing style. Jaden had seen the students of Miator duel before, and he had never seen them duel like the one before him was. Yubel had appeared next to Jaden to watch the duel as the Miator student finished off her opponent with a powered up dragon monster. With her opponent defeated, the Miator student walked away with a cold expression on her face.

"Is it just me, or have the Miator girls become a little more ruthless?" Yubel observed.

"It's not just you, that's the second Miator student I've seen duel with such anger." Jaden agreed.

"You remember the summer when we were here looking for the Wicked Gods?" Yubel asked. "We overheard Amane tell Nagisa that most of the students of Miator were like caged birds. Well now they're more like ravenous hawks."

"I wonder if this is because of the new student council that Tamao started?" Jaden theorized. "Amane did say that the school changed when they took over."

"It is not just the student council, but the power of the Orichalcos that is responsible for this change." Timaeus said as he appeared next to Jaden in his knight form. "The Orichalcos is starting to bring out the darkness within Miator's students. And if it is not stopped it will spread."

"You said before that the Orichalcos ended up turning the people of Atlantis into monsters." Jaden noted. "Will the same thing happen here?"

"It might if the darkness is not stopped." Timaeus said gravely.

At that moment Yaya and Tsubomi showed up on a walk. They went over to Jaden after noticing he was there.

"Hey Jaden." Yaya greeted.

"Oh hi Yaya." Jaden greeted back. "How're you doing since that duel yesterday?"

"I'm still a little sore but okay." Yaya answered.

"Say, I've been noticing how different a lot of the Miator students are." Jaden told the two girls. "Is it really because of Tamao's student council?"

"You bet it is." Tsubomi answered. "Nobody can say for sure, but the rumors are that it's because of the clubs that the student council started at Miator. They say they're like some kind of intense boot camp."

"That's just not right." Jaden said with a slightly sad expression. "Dueling is supposed to be fun."

"Jaden Yuki!" a voice suddenly called.

The three turned to see a Miator student with raven-black hair and icy blue eyes. The skirt of her uniform was shorter than most of the skirts worn by Miator, and she wore black fingerless gloves on her hands. Immediately Jaden recognized the girl as one of the Four Witches.

"That's Tomoyo Mikage." Tsubomi observed with a slightly frightened expression. "She's supposed to be the second strongest member of the Four Witches. They call her the assassin."

Tomoyo continued to give Jaden and icy cold stare, causing Jaden to step forward.

"I guess you're here for me." Jaden said to Tomoyo with a serious expression.

"I have been ordered to eliminate you from this tournament." Tomoyo explained. "You have twenty five points, I have thirty. If I win you shall be out."

"That's a pretty big if." Jaden said confidently. "I don't suppose I have a choice in this."

In answer to Jaden's assumption, Tomoyo threw a small knife from her pocket that passed dangerously close to Tsubomi's head, causing a few strands of hair to be cut. This caused Yaya to stand protectively in front of Tsubomi and glare at Tomoyo.

"I do not wish to use force, but I will if you continue to resist." Tomoyo stated.

"Then I guess it's game on." Jaden said as he activated his duel disk.

With their life points set to 4000 the duel began. Tomoyo had the first draw.

"I summon Mystical Elf in Defense Mode and end my turn!" Tomoyo announced.

A blue skinned female elf with long blond hair wearing a green dress appeared on the field on her knees, her hands brought together as if she were in prayer. Jaden drew his first card.

"First I play Polymerization and fuse Elemental Hero Clayman with Elemental Hero Sparkman to summon Elemental Hero Thunder Giant!" Jaden announced. The electric giant dropped from the sky onto the battlefield with a loud thud. "Now I discard one card to activate Thunder Giant's effect and destroy Mystical Elf!"

Thunder Giant raised his arms forward and shot the elf with a bolt of lightning. The elf shattered into triangles of gold light.

"Thunder Giant, attack Tomoyo directly!" Jaden commanded. "Voltic Thunder!"

Thunder Giant raised his arms and threw a ball of electricity at Tomoyo. The impact reduced her life points to 1600.

"I lay down a facedown and end my turn!" Jaden announced as he placed a card in his duel disk, and with that Tomoyo drew her next card.

"I summon Sonic Bird!" Tomoyo announced. A large eagle wearing goggles and a jetpack appeared on the field. "When Sonic Bird is summoned, I can add one Ritual Spell card to my hand. And the card I add to my hand is Orichalcos Ritual!"

Jaden knew what was coming next. He had seen it in his duel with Mika. Tomoyo was going to use the Orichalcos Ritual to sacrifice both their monsters and summon the Dark Orc of the West.

"Now I activate Orichalcos Ritual and sacrifice my Sonic Bird and your Thunder Giant to summon Swift Goblin of the South!" Tomoyo announced.

With that the mystical circle of the Orichalcos Ritual appeared on the field. The two monsters screamed in pain as lightning bolts shot up from the circle and slowly deconstructed them bit-by-bit. When both monsters were finally destroyed, a pillar of black flames erupted from the circle, eventually clearing to reveal a slender creature with beady red eyes, greed skin, pointed ears, and a hooked nose. It wore a black helmet and black armor on its torso. In its right hand it carried a curved sword. At the same time Tomoyo's eyes began glowing red.

"What's going on?" Jaden asked with a confused expression. "I thought the Orichalcos Ritual summoned Dark Orc of the West."

"The Orichalcos Ritual is capable of summoning four different monsters." Tomoyo explained. "Each one is held by a different member of the student council. Now because I am unable to attack I end my turn!"

Jaden drew his next card hoping to find a way to destroy the Goblin. Unfortunately nothing in his hand was capable of doing so. His only option was to buy time until he drew The Eye of Timaeus.

"I summon Elemental Hero Burstinatrix in Defense Mode and end my turn!" Jaden announced as the female hero of flames appeared on the field in a crouched position.

"I summon Neo the Magic Swordsman to the field!" Tomoyo announced after drawing her next card.

An armored warrior with blond hair appeared on the field next to Swift Goblin of the South. But as soon as the warrior appeared his skin turned green and his hair turned grey. His ears and nose became long and pointed.

"Let me guess, your Swift Goblin turns all your monsters into Fiends." Jaden observed.

"That is correct." Tomoyo confirmed. "In this case they become Goblins. Now my Swift Goblin of the South attacks Burstinatrix with Shadow Blade!"

The Swift Goblin charged forward and sliced Burstinatrix in half with his sword. The two halves shattered into gold triangles.

"I activate my facedown, Hero Signal!" Jaden announced, but when he pressed the button on his duel disk to activate it, nothing happened. "Hey, what's going on?"

"I'm afraid because my Swift Goblin is on the field, neither of us can activate Trap cards during the Battle Phase." Tomoyo explained. "Now for my next move, Neo attacks directly! Magic Sword Slash!"

The goblin swordsman charged and slashed Jaden across the chest, and just like in the duel with Mika, the damage felt real. The strike had reduced Jaden's life points to 2300.

"There is more!" Tomoyo added. "Due to the effect of Swift Goblin of the South, when a Fiend-Type monster inflicts battle damage, the player who took that damage must send cards from the top of his deck to the Graveyard equal to the amount of damage he took times 100! Which means you must send seventeen cards to the Graveyard!"

Reluctantly, Jaden took the seventeen cards from the top of his deck and inserted them into the Graveyard slot on his duel disk. He was distressed to find that one of the cards sent was The Eye of Timaeus.

"No way, if Jaden runs out of cards to draw he'll lose instantly!" Tsubomi exclaimed from the sidelines.

"He'll find a way to win." Yaya said reassuringly. "Just like he did against Mika."

"My Swift Goblin has 2600 ATK points, 300 points more than the amount of life point you have." Tomoyo pointed out to Jaden. "You could of course try to continue to defend yourself, but because you are unable to activate Traps during the battle you can only do so much. And because you lose cards for the damage you take you'll lose eventually lose automatically. You can choose to lose quickly or slowly. I'll let you decide."

Jaden reached for the next card on top of his deck, hoping for a miracle. When he touched the card it began glowing with a white light. With a blinding flash Jaden found himself standing in the same ancient temple where he had met Timaeus. Just as before Yubel was standing next to him in solid form.

"What are we doing back here?" Jaden asked.

"You are here because you need my aid." A voice answered.

Jaden and Yubel turned to see a man wearing a dark blue cape and blue armor similar to Timaeus's. Jaden noticed that he bore a striking resemblance to Seto Kaiba.

"Let me guess, you're one of Timaeus's two brothers." Yubel observed.

"That is correct." The knight answered. "And I am here because you cannot defeat your current enemy with Timaeus's power alone. Please allow me to fight by your side."

"Well I could certainly use your help right now." Jaden said as he stepped forward and offered his hand. "Would you mind telling me your name?"

"I am Critias." The knight said as he shook Jaden's hand.

In another blinding flash of light Jaden found himself back in the duel hold the card he had just drawn from the deck. The card he held was the same type of card as The Eye of Timaeus. Just as before Jaden found that he knew how to use the card.

"I play The Fang of Critias!" Jaden announced, and with a huge gust of wind appeared a navy-blue dragon with a blue-grey belly and a pair of large incisor fangs. "Now I combine Critias with my facedown Trap, Hero Signal to form Hero Force Dragon!"

The large representation of Jaden's Trap suddenly lifted off the ground and went into Critias. Critias's scales turned black and his belly grey. A red mask appeared on his face and a long red scarf appeared around his neck. On his chest was a large golden H that looked like the one that appeared in the artwork of Hero Signal.

"Did he just turn a Trap card into a monster?" a surprised and very confused Yaya asked.

"Now because I summoned Hero Force Dragon I can Special Summon four Heroes from my deck!" Jaden announced. "So now I summon Elemental Hero Bladedge, Elemental Hero Wildheart, Elemental Hero Bubbleman, and Elemental Hero Neos!"

With a loud roar form Hero Force Dragon the four Heroes appeared on the field in a flash of white light, greatly surprising Tomoyo.

"Don't worry, the monsters summoned by Hero Force Dragon can't attack." Jaden explained. "But his ATK rises for each Hero that was summoned by his effect, which means Hero Force Dragon's ATK goes up from 2400 to 4000!"

"That's stronger than both of Tomoyo's monsters!" Tsubomi happily exclaimed.

"Hero Force Dragon, attack Neo the Magic Swordsman!" Jaden commanded. "Hero Heart Blaze!"

The masked dragon reared back his head and breathed a stream of crimson flames at the goblin swordsman. Neo burned away and Tomoyo's life points dropped to zero. With the duel over the remaining monsters on the field vanished. The number on Tomoyo's point counter dropped from thirty to twenty-five, while the number on Jaden's counter rose from twenty-five to thirty.

"This is not over Jaden Yuki." Tomoyo stated before throwing a smoke bomb.

When the smoke cleared Tomoyo was gone, though nobody saw any point in pursuing her. Jaden breathed a sigh of relief as Yubel appeared next to him.

"That was a close one." Yubel commented. "If that duel went on any longer you would've lost."

"It's a good thing that Critias showed up to help us out." Jaden pointed out.

"I am happy to be of service to you." Critias said as he appeared in front of Jaden with Timaeus, both of them in their knight forms. "But the battle is far from over."

"I know." Jaden replied. "There are still two other members of the Four Witches. Plus Mika and Tomoyo aren't out of the tournament yet."

"Don't forget about Tamao." Yubel pointed out. "She's probably the one pulling the strings."

"I still don't quite believe that Tamao is behind all of this." Jaden said to Yubel.

"Those influenced by the Orichalcos are capable of many things." Timaeus told Jaden. "Do not underestimate this girl Tamao."

* * *

A bit later at the student council room of Miator, Tamao and the Four Witches were having a meeting about the duel with Jaden.

"Care to explain how you were defeated?" a very displeased Tamao asked Tomoyo.

"Forgive me my lady." Tomoyo said as she kneeled before Tamao. "I did not anticipate that Jaden Yuki would have a second card like the one he used against Mika."

"A second card?" Tamao asked with a startled expression. "What was this card called?"

"The Fang of Critias." Tomoyo answered. "It had the power to create a Fusion monster from a Trap card."

"How is that possible?" Hiyori asked. "I've never heard of a card like that."

"Oh it's possible." Tamao sighed as she stood up from her chair. "It seems that the Knights of Atlantis have chosen to follow Jaden Yuki. If we do not stop him soon our plans to create a new world will be ruined. We must eliminate him soon."

* * *

**Author's Note:** I had originally planned for this duel to be split into two chapters, but by the time I got to the part where I planned to have my cliffhanger there was only one turn left to go. So I decided to finish it here (I have been making a lot of edits to the outline of this story). As you've probably guessed, Jaden is going to get the third Legendary Dragon later in the story. Just one of the little ways I'm trying to make this story different from the Waking the Dragons (Doma) arc of the original anime.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	11. Remember Love

**Author's Note:** This chapter was not one I had originally planed to do in this story. But when I was looking at the outline for the story again after months of not touching this thing, I felt that one of the chapters I had originally planed to do was unnecessary, so I cut it. But after I did I realized that it would skip over a day of the tournament. So I needed to fill it with something. Then the idea for this chapter just came to me, along with the OCs it introduces. I apologize in advance for the length of this chapter. At the time I didn't think it would be so long, but that's how it turned out. And I didn't want to split it into two parts, because I thought it might screw up the pacing of the story. It's by no means a dull chapter, but you might want to get something to drink before you sit down to read it.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 10: Remember Love

The sixth day of the tournament had so far been uneventful. No other member of the Four Witches had come after Jaden. One thing had been bothering Jaden all day, and that was the idea that Tamao was behind the Four Witches and the mess with the Orichalcos. It occurred to him though that he didn't know too much about what had been going on with Tamao since the incident with the Wicked Gods. Jaden had heard that Tamao had become student council president of Miator, but beyond that he knew nothing. So he decided to go ask Chikaru if she knew of any change in Tamao's behavior.

That afternoon Jaden encountered Chikaru out in the field behind Lilum having tea. Kizuna, Remon, and Kagome were with her.

"Hey girls." Jaden greeted as he walked over to the four Lilum students.

"Oh, hello Jaden." Chikaru greeted with her usual warm smile. "What brings you here."

"Well, I came to ask you about Tamao." Jaden explained. "I'd like to know if you've noticed anything different about her since the last time I was here."

"This is about the Four Witches, isn't it?" Chikaru assumed.

"That and a few other things." Jaden confirmed. "I just can't quite believe that Tamao could be behind it all."

"You probably would if you'd seen how she's acted in her role as student council president." Chikaru said as her expression became serious. "She may act all sweet and innocent, but she's a wolf in sheep's clothing. Tamao has become quite cunning and manipulative, and she's done things behind the backs of the other presidents and the Etolie. Not too long before you got here, Tamao told the head mistress that the finals for the tournament would be held in Miator's stadium before Shion, the Etolie, and I agreed to it. You wouldn't believe the stress she's caused poor Shion."

"That just doesn't sound like the Tamao I remember." Jaden said sounding a little surprised. "When did you notice that she had changed?"

"Well, I guess I noticed something when she started running for the position of president." Chikaru said after thinking about it for a moment. "But at the time I thought it was just her trying to move on from her break up with Nagisa. Is there something you know that we don't Jaden?"

"Actually there is, and I may as well tell you about it." Jaden told her with a serious expression.

Before Jaden could begin telling the girls about the threat of the Orichalcos, another girl suddenly showed up. Jaden could tell from the girl's uniform that she was another Lilum student, and she had violet eyes and light-blue hair done in a braided ponytail. A sad expression was on the girl's face.

"Oh, hi Hitomi." Kizuna greeted the girl.

"You know her?" Jaden asked Kizuna.

"Sort of." Kizuna answered. "Remon and I run into her every now and then. She's very nice."

"So what brings you here Hitomi?" Remon asked the girl.

Hitomi ignored her and walked up to Jaden.

"Are you Jaden Yuki?" Hitomi asked somewhat hesitantly.

"That's me." Jaden confirmed. "Is there something wrong?"

"Please…" Hitomi began to beg as tears started to well up in her eyes. "You have to save Saki!"

At this point Hitomi broke down in tears. Chikaru got her to sit down on the blanket that she and the others were having tea on. After a few minutes Hitomi had calmed down enough to explain what was going on.

"I'm sorry about breaking down like that." Hitomi said as she wiped away the last of her tears. "It's just that I've been a complete wreck these past few weeks."

"What exactly is the problem?" Jaden asked with a look of concern.

"It's my girlfriend, Saki." Hitomi explained. "She's changed."

"I didn't know you had a girlfriend." Kizuna interrupted.

"She goes to Miator." Hitomi told them.

"Seriously?" both Kizuna and Remon said together with a look of surprise.

"What's the big deal?" Jaden asked. "Is it forbidden for students to date girls from other schools?"

"It certainly is not!" Chikaru interjected. "Although it is a little unheard of, and can sadly cause tension because of the rivalry between our three schools."

"I met Saki when I first came to the island." Hitomi continued. "I was out taking a walk and lost track of time. Before I knew it, it had gotten dark, and even with the full moon in the sky I couldn't find my way back to the dorms. But then I ran into Saki out by the lake. She told me she was there to watch the moon. And after I explained that I had gotten lost, Saki helped me back to the dorms. We became friends after that, and after awhile our friendship became something more."

"You said that Saki had changed though." Chikaru interrupted. "What do you mean by that?"

"I guess it began not long after that new student council took over Miator." Hitomi began. "At first there weren't any problems, but soon I started seeing Saki less and less. And when I did see her she seemed tired, and also frustrated. There were a few times when she just snapped at me for no reason. And then a few weeks ago… Saki told me that she wanted nothing more to do with me, that I was holding her back from becoming a champion and I should get lost."

Hitomi broke down again at this point. It was a few more minutes before she could continue.

"She, she even threw out the card I had given her." Hitomi said as she wiped away the new tears and pulled out a card from her pocket.

Jaden took a look at the card. It was a monster card that he was somewhat familiar with.

"Maiden of the Moonlight?" Jaden asked after examining the card.

"It sort of reminded me of Saki on the night we met." Hitomi explained. "I know it's not a very powerful card, but Saki used it in a duel whenever she could. She had once told me that it was a precious gift that I had given her. But now she thinks of it as trash, like she thinks I am."

"That's terrible!" Kizuna exclaimed as Hitomi tried to hold back more tears. "But what do you expect Jaden to do about it?"

"I was there when you destroyed that demon that had come to the island." Hitomi told Jaden, referring to his battle with the combined form of the Wicked Gods. "I don't know who else to turn to. Please, you have to bring Saki back to the way she was!"

"What are you going to do?" Yubel asked Jaden as she appeared next to him. "I know that we've helped couples on this island out before, but this problem might not be something we can do anything about."

Jaden knew that Yubel had a point. He couldn't do much of anything to change Saki back to her old self if a dark supernatural force wasn't corrupting her. But then again maybe she was if the darkness of the Orichalcos was spreading over Miator. And even if there wasn't Jaden felt that he had to try and help in some way.

"Okay, I'll do what I can." Jaden told Hitomi. "Let's go find Saki."

After about an hour of searching the island, the group finally found Saki. She was a somewhat tall girl with long dark-blue hair and striking emerald eyes. Her Miator uniform gave her a somewhat regal appearance. Saki was standing over a Spica student that she had just defeated; a cold expression was on her face.

"You lost, now get out of my sight!" Saki commanded her defeated opponent.

The Spica student shot a glare at Saki as she got up before leaving. Just as Saki was about to leave and search for another opponent, Jaden and the others quickly came towards her.

"Saki!" Hitomi called, getting the Miator student's attention.

"Oh, it you. What do you want?" Saki coldly asked.

"Here." Hitomi said as she cautiously offered the Maiden of the Moonlight card to Saki. "Remember what this card meant to you? I'm sure it still means something, just as I'm sure you still love me."

"Get that thing out of my face!" Saki spat as she slapped Hitomi's hand away, knocking the card to the ground. "It's as useless to me as you are. I don't need you or that card holding me back."

"But Saki…" Hitomi began as tears began to well up in her eyes again.

"Get out of here!" Saki shouted as she slapped Hitomi in the face. "I told you that it's over between us, so leave and don't ever come near me again!"

"That's enough!" Jaden interrupted as he walked over and picked the Maiden of the Moonlight card off the ground.

"Who the hell are you?" Saki demanded.

"Jaden Yuki." The wandering pro duelist answered simply as he narrowed his eyes at Saki. "And I don't like what you're doing to Hitomi. Can't you see that she loves you?"

"I don't need love." Saki coldly declared. "All love does is distract people. I need to throw away all useless things if I'm to become a champion."

"You sound like Mika." Jaden told her as he remembered his duel with the witch who wielded the Dark Orc of the West.

"Well she's right." Saki retorted. "I've learned through hard training that a duelist must stand alone in order to become strong."

"Hey Hitomi, mind if I borrow your card for a few minutes?" Jaden asked after a moment, not once taking his eyes off of Saki.

"Uh, sure." Hitomi said sounding a little surprised.

"What do you intend to do?" Saki asked Jaden.

"I'm going to beat you with this card and remind you that a duelist's true strength comes from their friends and loved ones." Jaden proclaimed as he slipped the Maiden of the Moonlight card into his deck.

"Are you challenging me?" Saki asked with a raised eyebrow.

"What does it look like?" Jaden stated, as the answer was obvious.

"A challenge from the great Jaden Yuki." Saki said as a small smirk began to form on her face. "I saw you defeat that duelist Yako Tenma and his Wicked Gods last year, and I have to admit that a challenge from you intrigues me. How many points do you have?"

"Thirty." Jaden answered.

"That's the same amount that I have." Saki informed him. "If I defeat you I'll not only be closer to the finals, but I'll have knocked you out of the tournament at the same time. Alright, I'll take you on."

Back on the sidelines as Chikaru and the others were preparing to watch the duel when Clive suddenly showed up.

"Well, well, if it isn't the lovely Ms. Chikaru." Clive greeted in a suave manner. "What you brings you out all the way here?"

"Oh, you're Jaden's friend Clive." Chikaru observed after noticing the duelist's arrival. "This isn't really a good time to chat. Jaden is just about to duel."

"So I see." Clive responded as he noticed Jaden and Saki about to face off. "Well then, I hope you don't mind if I join you and your friends in watching the legendary Fusion Master in action."

Meanwhile, both Jaden and Saki activated their duel disks, and with their life points set at 4000, the duel began.

"I'm going first!" Jaden declared as he drew his first card. "I summon Elemental Hero Clayman in Defense Mode and end my turn!"

Jaden's stone armored hero appeared on the field in a crouched position. Saki drew her first card.

"For my first move I'm going to give Clayman a little present." Saki announced. "I equip Clayman with Shooting Star Bow-Ceal!"

A silvery bow and arrow appeared in Clayman's large right hand. A look of confusion formed on Jaden's face.

"Can Saki even do that?" a confused Kizuna asked.

"There's no rule against it." Chikaru answered. "A player can place an Equip Spell card on either his or her own monster, or a monster belonging to their opponent. But the card itself goes in the owner's Spell and Trap Zone. What I can't understand is why Saki would do such a move. It would make sense if the card had a very negative effect, but all Shooting Star Bow has done is reduce Clayman's ATK points to zero. It does nothing to its DEF points."

"I understand why she did that." Clive interrupted. "The Fusion Master better be on his toes for this duel."

"Now because I have Shooting Star Bow on my side of the field, I can summon Guardian Ceal!" Saki announced.

Appearing on Saki's side of the field in a burst of flames was a green humanoid dragon-like creature clad in fiery red armor.

"I knew it." Striker said with a smug look. "That girl Saki plays a Guardian deck."

"Guardian?" Remon asked with a raised eyebrow.

"An old but powerful group of monsters that need certain Equip Spell cards on the field in order to be played." Striker explained. "Each Guardian has a specific weapon that's needed to summon them to the field. Think of them as the protector spirits that reside in those weapons."

"Now I equip Ceal with Rod of Silence-Kay'est!" Saki announced back in the duel.

Appearing on the field next to Ceal was a sapphire colored rod that resembled a jellyfish encased in a pillar of ice. Ceal slammed his fist into the pillar and took the rod in his hand.

"Is Saki going to summon another one of those Guardian things?" Kizuna asked in a worried tone.

"Not unless Saki can Special Summon it." Chikaru explained. "There must be another reason that she equipped Ceal with that card."

"I activate Ceal's effect and send Rod of Silence to the Graveyard to destroy Clayman!" Saki announced.

The rod in Ceal's hand turned into a large fireball. Ceal threw the fireball at Clayman, destroying the armored hero with a small explosion.

"Ceal, attack Jaden directly!" Saki commanded. "Shooting Star Arrow!"

The silver bow and arrow once held by Clayman materialized in Ceal's hands. Ceal fired a flaming arrow at Jaden. The attack hit and reduced Jaden's life points to 2300.

"I set one card on the field and end my turn!" Saki announced. Jaden drew his next card.

"I activate Polymerization and fuse Elelmental Hero Avian with Elemental Hero Burstinatrix to summon Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!" Jaden announced. The green hero with the red dragonhead arm appeared on the field. "Flame Wingman, attack Guardian Ceal with Flame Shoot!"

Flame Wingman aimed his dragonhead arm and shot a fireball at the Guardian monster.

"I activate my Trap, Widespread Ruin!" Saki announced. "This card destroys my opponent's monster with the highest ATK, which in this case is your Flame Wingman!"

Before the fireball attack could hit, a devastating inferno washed over the field and incinerated Flame Wingman. The hero was reduced to ashes.

"I lay down two facedowns and end my turn!" Jaden announced. Saki drew her next card, and a smile appeared on her face when she looked at it.

"I'm going to bring this duel to an end right here and now!" Saki declared. "I equip Ceal with Celestial Sword-Eatos!"

An ornate sword suddenly fell from the sky and stuck into the ground next to Ceal. Ceal drew the sword from the ground with his right hand. A shocked expression appeared on Jaden's face. Back on the sidelines Chikaru and Clive looked just as shocked.

"No way!" Clive exclaimed as he took off his sunglasses to make sure that he wasn't seeing things. "She couldn't have that monster."

"What monster is that?" Remon asked.

"Among the Guardian monsters is a monster that stands above all the others." Chikaru explained. "A Guardian with incredible power. But the card is so rare that very few duelists have it."

"I've heard of one guy who has that card." Clive interjected. "A real muscular guy if I remember the stories right. I don't remember his name off the top of my head; I think it starts with an R. But he's a pretty strong duelist, and he's one of the few people in the world who has that card."

"And now because I have Celestial Sword-Eatos on my field and no monsters in my Graveyard, I Special Summon Guardian Eatos!" Saki announced.

A ray of light suddenly shined onto the field, and descending from the sky was a woman with blond hair and white angelic wings wearing a Native American style dress and a large headdress in the shape of an eagle head.

"So she really does have it." Clive said as he beheld the arrival of Eatos. "The legendary Guardian monster. This girl Saki must have some amazing luck."

"It's not luck." Hitomi spoke up. "Saki once told me that when she found Guardian Eatos, it felt like the card had chosen her."

Back in the duel, Jaden could sense that the monster his opponent had summoned was not a normal one. He could also see a somewhat sad expression on Eatos's face.

"This could be a problem." Yubel said as she appeared behind Jaden. "A monster like that is usually very protective of its wielder. We could be in for a rough fight."

"Do you seen the look on Eatos's face?" Jaden asked Yubel. "It's like she's in pain."

"You're right." Yubel agreed. "If I had to guess, I'd say that Eatos doesn't like what Saki has become anymore than Hitomi does."

"Now I play the Spell card, Taylor of the Fickle!" Saki announced. "This let's me switch Celestial Sword from Ceal to Eatos!"

The sword glowed with a faint green aura and flew from Ceal's hand to Eatos's.

"Now I activate the effect of Guardian Eatos!" Saki announced. "I send Celestial Sword to the Graveyard and remove Elemental Hero Avian, Elemental Hero Burstinatrix, and Elemental Hero Flame Wingman from your Graveyard!"

Eatos raised her sword into the air. The sword shattered, and the three monsters that Saki had named suddenly appeared above the field in spirit form.

"The ATK of the monsters removed get added to the ATK of Eatos until the end of my turn." Saki explained. "Which means her ATK rises from 2500 to 6800."

The three monsters that had been removed from Jaden's Graveyard turned into white light and were drawn to Eatos's right hand and became a spear.

"Eatos, attack Jaden Yuki directly!" Saki commanded. "Guardian's Judgment!"

"I activate my Trap, Negate Attack!" Jaden announced just as Eatos threw the spear of light.

As soon as the spear was thrown it was sucked into a small vortex that appeared in front of Jaden. Chikaru and the others watching on the sidelines breathed a sigh of relief.

"Fine, you survive for this round, but on my next turn your dead." Saki declared in an irritated tone. "I end my turn!"

"Wow, that was close." Remon said as she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Jaden bought himself a little time." Chikaru stated. "The effect of Guardian Eatos only works if the opponent has a lot of monsters in the Graveyard. Right now Jaden only has one."

"True, but his life points are lower than Eatos's ATK points." Clive pointed out. "And there's still the effect of Guardian Ceal, which can destroy a monster by sacrificing and Equip card. It's a pretty tight spot he's in."

Jaden drew his next card. It was the card that he borrowed from Hitomi before the duel began, and he hoped it would be enough to end the duel and bring Saki to her senses.

"I summon Maiden of the Moonlight in Attack Mode!" Jaden announced as he placed the card in his duel disk.

Appearing on the field was a woman with pale skin, brown hair that ended just above her shoulders, ad white angelic wings wearing a white dress.

"You gotta be kidding me!" Clive exclaimed. "The Fusion Master expects to defend himself against the legendary Guardian monster with a wimpy card like that?"

"Hey, don't insult Hitomi's card!" Kizuna angrily told Clive, startling the pro duelist.

"Yeah, that card is a precious gift that Hitomi gave Saki, and now Jaden is using it to try and get her back!" Remon added.

"Wait, who's Hitomi? Did I miss something before coming here?" Clive asked, feeling like he had just committed a crime.

"You missed plenty, so just be quiet and watch." Chikaru told him.

"You're fighting me with that piece of trash?" Saki asked coldly.

"This card represents the love that you and Hitomi have for each other." Jaden told her. "Hitomi told me that you used this card in a duel every chance you had. It may not be the strongest card, but it still meant a lot to you because it was a gift from her."

"That card and Hitomi have been holding me back." Saki retorted. "I don't need such useless things in my life. Now are you done with your turn or not?"

Jaden noticed the look in Saki's eyes as she said those words. Her eyes looked as if they were filled with pain. It was as if she didn't mean what she had just said.

"…I end my turn." Jaden finally announced. Saki drew her next card.

"I activate Card of Sanctity, which lets us both draw until we have six cards in our hands." Saki announced.

"This could be real bad." Clive stated on the sidelines. "That girl Saki is bound to draw an Equip card, and if she does it's all over."

"…Well, it seems I didn't draw any Equip cards." Saki stated as she looked at her hand. "But it doesn't matter. All you have is that weak Maiden of the Moonlight that you and Hitomi keep throwing in my face. Eatos, destroy that pathetic card!"

A shocked expression appeared on Eatos's face with that command. The Guardian monster looked back at Saki to see if she was serious. At the same time a shocked and somewhat frightened expression appeared on the Maiden of the Moonlight's face

"You heard me, kill her!" Saki commanded Eatos.

Eatos gritted her teeth and turned her attention back to the battlefield. She raised her right arm and another spear of light formed in her hand. With a loud cry Eatos threw the spear.

"I activate my Trap, Justi-Break!" Jaden announced. "When a Normal Monster on my side of the field is targeted for an attack, all monsters on the field except for Normal Monsters are destroyed!"

Maiden of the Moonlight quickly raised her right arm and shot a bolt of yellow lightning into the air. Three bolts of lightning came down and not only destroyed the spear, but Eatos and Ceal as well. As sad expression appeared on the Maiden's face as she watched Eatos be destroyed.

"When used in the right way, even weak cards can win a duel." Jaden told Saki. "There was a time when you remembered that, and I think down you still do."

"…So you think you've won because you destroyed Eatos?" Saki asked in a low voice. "Well your nightmare is just beginning."

With those words a hand suddenly burst up from the ground, startling Jaden and those who were watching. On the sidelines Kagome started squeezing her teddy bear even tighter. Another hand burst up from the ground, and the rest of the creature soon followed. It looked similar to Eatos, but was far darker looking. Much of her body was wrapped in bandages. Brown rusty armor adorned her upper torso and wrists. Her once white angelic wings had become black, and her hair had turned brown and stringy. On her face she wore a sinister white mask in red eyes.

"What is that thing?" Kizuna asked in a frightened tone.

"I can't be!" Clive exclaimed as the color drained from his face. "That monster is Guardian Dreadscythe!"

"I've never heard of that card." Chikaru told Clive.

"Only a few duelists have." Clive replied. "Most consider it a myth because it was said to have been used in only one duel, a duel that some people don't think even happened. You remember I mentioned that guy who also used Guardian Eatos? Well in that duel he used Dreadscythe too. And it's said that the card is practically indestructible."

"Guardian Dreadscythe is summoned when Guardian Eatos is destroyed." Saki explained back in the duel. "And when she's summoned I can equip her with Reaper Scythe-Dreadscythe from my deck, which I do so now!"

A large rusty scythe dropped from the sky and was caught by Dreadscythe.

"Reaper Scythe gives Dreadscythe 500 ATK for each monster in my Graveyard, and right now there are two, so her ATK is 3500." Saki explained. "Not only that, but if you try to destroy Dreadscythe in any way I have to discard a card to prevent it. And most of the cards in my hand are monsters, so all you'd end up doing is make Dreadscythe even more powerful."

"If Saki only had one or two cards in her hand, Jaden could probably destroy Dreadscythe pretty easily." Chikaru pointed out on the sidelines. "But right now she has six. I'm not sure how Jaden can get out of this."

"There was only one duelist who was able to destroy Guardian Dreadscythe." Clive said with a grave expression. "And that was Yugi Muto himself."

"I get it now, like that card you're willing to throw away everything to become a champion, even the things that are the most important." Jaden observed.

"That's right, I don't care who I have to step over or what ties I have to cut!" Saki confirmed with a slightly insane smile. "I'll do whatever it takes to become a champion! And I'm going to start by taking you down! Dreadscythe, slaughter Maiden of the Moonlight with Reaper Slash!"

Dreadscythe charged at Maiden of the Moonlight and relentlessly cut her in half. Jaden's life points fell to 300.

"I end my turn." Saki announced. Back on the sidelines Hitomi fell to her knees on the verge of tears once again.

"She's really gone." Hitomi said with a tone of helplessness. "The Saki I know and love is gone, and after what I've just seen I don't think anything can bring her back, not even Jaden."

Jaden heard Hitomi's cries from the sidelines and felt that she was right. The look in Saki's eyes had changed from pain to madness. It seemed to Jaden that there was little hope of bringing Saki back to the person she was. The only thing left was to end the duel. Jaden knew that there were other ways to get rid of Dreadscythe other than destroying her, and one of those ways was in his hand. His hand contained Elemental Hero Neos, Neo-Spacian Grand Mole, Fake Hero, and Contact Out. With those four cards Jaden could return Dreadscythe to Saki's hand and deliver two devastating attacks that could end the duel. The other two cards in Jaden's hand were Elemental Hero Sparkman and Swing of Memories, but they were of no help in that situation. With his course of action decided, Jaden drew his next card, and was surprised to find that it was The Eye of Timaeus.

"Do not give up hope Jaden Yuki." Timaeus said as he appeared next to Jaden in his knight form. "There is still a chance we can bring this girl back to her senses."

"What do you mean?" Jaden asked.

"One of the reasons for this girl's behavior is Guardian Dreadscythe." Timaeus explained. "That card was created by the Orichalcos."

"Wait, back up." Yubel chimed in. "How is Dreadscythe related to the Orichalcos?"

"Back when King Dartz was trying to revive the Great Leviathan, he sent three warriors to eliminate the Nameless Pharaoh, Seto Kaiba, and Joey Wheeler." Timaeus explained. "The duelist sent after the Pharaoh used Guardian Eatos. But when Dartz gave that man the power of the Orichalcos, Eatos was twisted into the creature you now face."

"I get it, so Dreadscythe is Eatos's dark side." Yubel observed. "And now the card is driving Saki nuts."

"That is correct." Timaeus confirmed. "And now the darkness of the Orichalcos has infected this girl and twisted Eatos yet again."

"Okay, so how do save Saki from this darkness?" Jaden asked.

"The answer lies with Maiden of the Moonlight." Timaeus explained. "The heart of that card contains the desire to return Saki to the person she once was. The power of my dragon form can bring that desire out and turn it into a power that can banish the darkness."

"Okay, we'll give it a shot." Jaden said as a smile of hope came to his face. "For my first move I activate Swing of Memories and summon Maiden of the Moonlight back to the field!"

Maiden of the Moonlight appeared back on Jaden's side of the field.

"Why waist your time bringing back that sorry excuse for a card?" Saki asked with an arrogant grin.

"Because this is the card that's going to remind you of the person you were! And now I play The Eye of Timaeus!" Jaden announced. Timaeus roared onto the field in his dragon form. "Now I combine Timaeus with Maiden of the Moonlight to create Lunar Wing Dragon!"

Timaeus roared again and turned into a green energy force that entered the Maiden of the Moonlight's left eye, causing her to inhale sharply. The Maiden's wings then expanded and folded around her like a cocoon. The wings glowed with a brilliant white light and expanded to three times their size. The wings unfolded to reveal a large but slender dragon with silver scales and eyes like sapphires. Smaller white-feathered wings were on the sides of its head. On its torso it wore glittering gold armor, and on its head a golden faceplate with a clear gemstone adorning the forehead.

"And now to get rid of Guardian Dreadscythe's evil!" Jaden declared. "I activate Lunar Wing Dragon's effect! Moon Crystal Purification!"

Lunar Wing Dragon fired a beam of white light from the crystal on its forehead. The beam his Dreadscythe and caused the dark guardian in blue flames. When the flames cleared Guardian Eatos was standing in Dreadscythe's place.

"What the…? Eatos!" a confused Saki exclaimed. Eatos gave Saki a sad glance before going over to Jaden's side of the battlefield. "Wait, what's going on? What are you doing Eatos?"

"Once per turn Lunar Wing Dragon can remove a Dark Attribute monster controlled by my opponent." Jaden explained. "And if the monster removed was summoned by the destruction of a specific monster, in this case Guardian Eatos, I can summon that monster to my side of the field. In other words I just changed Eatos back to who she was before she was warped by darkness."

"Impossible!" a shocked Saki exclaimed. "Does this mean… I'm going to lose?"

"Even if you do become a champion, it means nothing at the end of the day if you throw away everyone and everything you care about to get there." Jaden told Saki. "In the end all you have is nothing, and nothing is what you have right now. Lunar Wing Dragon has 2600 ATK, and when added to Eatos's 2500 ATK, that's more than enough to finish you off."

"But, but…" Saki stuttered.

"Eatos, attack Saki directly!" Jaden commanded. "Guardian's Judgment!"

Eatos raised her arm and threw a spear of light at Saki. Saki's life points dropped to 1500.

"Finish it Lunar Wing Dragon!" Jaden commanded. "Moon Healing Escalation!"

Lunar Wing Dragon reared back its head and shot a beam of white light at Saki. Saki screamed as the beam hit her and her life points dropped to zero. A defeated Saki dropped to her knees as the two monsters that had beaten her vanished. At the same time the Guardian Dreadscythe and Reaper Scythe-Dreadscythe cards fluttered to the ground and burst into flames. The number on Jaden's point counter doubled to sixty. At the same time the number on Saki's point counter dropped to zero and beeped, signaling that she was out of the tournament.

"What have I done?" Saki asked herself, though it was in a voice that was loud enough for the others to hear. "I gave up everything, and in the end I still lost."

"What made you think that you have to give up everything to become a strong duelist?" Jaden asked.

"It was the girl you mentioned earlier, Mika of the Four Witches." Saki answered. "I guess it began when the new student council took over. The first thing they did was to disband the old clubs and start new ones. Because club activities at Miator are mandatory, we were all assigned to new clubs based on records of our abilities. I was placed in Mika's advanced dueling club.

"At first I welcomed the challenge it offered, but it soon turned ugly. We were forced to duel into the late hours of the night, and all the time Mika judged our performance. Those of us who she thought were weak she dueled herself to teach us a lesson, and for some reason I had become her favorite target. She put me in what she called an intense training program where I was forced to duel her at the beginning and end of every club meeting, as well as a few times out of class. I started sleeping and eating less as a result, and no matter how hard I tried I lost every duel I had with Mika.

"Mika kept telling me that the reason I kept losing to her was because my relationship with Hitomi was holding me back and making me weak. Of course in the beginning I refused to believe that, but as time went on I started to second guess myself. Then one night a few weeks ago, something happened that broke my resolve completely…"

* * *

_On the night in question out behind Miator, Saki was dueling Mika yet again. And just as before Saki was on the losing end of the duel. A few turns had passed and Mika had summoned the Dark Orc of the West._

_"Finish this maggot off Dark Orc!" Mika commanded. "Soul Breaker Club!"_

_The Dark Orc charged at Saki and hit her to the ground with its club. The attack had reduced Saki's life points to zero. Saki coughed as she tried to get to her feet._

_"Okay, that was a little better." Mika said with a confident smirk. "But you're still letting your attachment to that weak card hold you back. Still, I like that look in your eyes. It's a look that says you want to kill me. Hold on to that feeling."_

_"Well, it sounds like you're making progress." A voice suddenly chimed in, causing both Mika and Saki to turn and see Tamao approaching them._

_"Lady Tamao, what are you doing here?" a surprised Mika asked._

_"I'm just out for a walk." Tamao explained. "The meeting with the student council presidents of Spica and Lilum ran a little long and I needed to stretch my legs. So, is this the girl you were telling me about a few nights ago?"_

_"That's her, the girl with the Guardian deck." Mika confirmed. "She even has the rare Guardian Eatos in her deck, and yet she's a wimp."_

_"Eatos, eh?" Tamao said looking a little surprised. "You should've told me that sooner Mika. That way I could've helped you with this matter."_

_"Lady Tamao?" Mika said with a look of confusion._

_Tamao raised her right hand and the Orichalcos stone on her ring began to glow with an eerie green light, as did her eyes. Saki suddenly felt a wave of nausea wash over her. Unbeknownst to Saki, Eatos appeared behind her in spirit form and then screamed and fell to the ground. A moment later Dreadscythe rose up in Eatos's place. Then in a flash of green light the Guardian Dreadscythe and Reaper Scythe cards appeared in Tamao's hand._

_"These are for you." Tamao said as she offered the cards to Saki. "They were once used by someone else who had been chosen by Eatos, but he threw them away. It's a shame really, as they had given him great power. But now they can be yours. Take them, and you will be able to unlock your true potential. You've gone as far as Mika's training can take you. These cards will take you to the next level as a duelist. Go on, take them."_

_Saki hesitantly took the cards from Tamao. When she did she felt a wave of power rush over her. It suddenly became clear to Saki what she thought she needed to do to get to the top._

_"You look tired." Tamao told Saki. "Why don't you go back to your room and rest?"_

_Saki nodded and headed for the dorms. Meanwhile Mika was scratching her head in confusion._

_"Uh, Lady Tamao, what was that I about?" Mika asked._

_"Oh, just something that might help speed up out plans a little faster." Tamao answered with a smile that was far too innocent._

* * *

"…After that night I made the worst mistake of my life." Saki said sadly she finished her tale. "I broke up with Hitomi and threw away the card she had given me, the card that had given me strength in all the duels I had fought before this horrible year. At the time I thought I was doing what I needed to become a champion duelist, but I can see now that I was a fool."

Jaden walked up to Saki and held out the Maiden of the Moonlight card to her.

"It's not too late you know." Jaden told her with a reassuring smile. "Hitomi still loves you. She was the one who asked me to come here to try and bring you back to your real self."

Saki took back the card with a surprised look on her face. She couldn't believe that Hitomi still cared for her after the way she had treated her.

"Saki… do you still love me?" Hitomi asked as she stepped forward.

"Of course I do." Saki said tearfully. "Breaking up with you was the worst mistake I ever made, and I'm sorry. So will you… still have me?"

Hitomi answered Saki's question by tackling her to the ground with a hug. Both girls were crying tears of joy.

"Well, this has been a weird afternoon." Clive commented, interrupting the tender moment. "I'm going back to guest house. Later Fusion Master."

Jaden turned his eyes back to the tender scene before him and saw that Eatos and Maiden of the Moonlight appeared before him in spirit form. The two Duel Monsters flashed him a smile before vanishing.

* * *

A few minutes later, Jaden was at Lilum waiting by the door to the student council room. After what seemed like twenty minutes Chikaru emerged from the room.

"Well we talked about it for awhile, and Saki has decided to transfer to Lilum." Chikaru informed Jaden.

"Students here can change to one of the other schools on the island?" Jaden asked.

"Of course they can." Chikaru answered. "It's just something that doesn't happen very often. But in this case we decided that it would be best for Saki."

"The laid back atmosphere around here will do her good I think." Jaden commented. "Plus this way she'll be closer to Hitomi."

"And on that note, Saki will also be moving into Hitomi's room at the dorms." Chikaru added. "Hitomi has never had a roommate, and I thought this would be helpful for both of them."

"Well, I'm glad this all turned out well." Jaden said as he stretched his arms a little.

"Me too." Chikaru agreed. "…So Jaden, what is it that's happening here on the island. I know from Saki's story that there's something dark going on at Miator, and I know you know the truth."

"Yeah, I guess it's time I told you about this mess with the Orichalcos." Jaden sighed.

* * *

**Author's Note:** This was kind of a hard duel to write, partly because of the anime effects of Eatos and Dreadscythe. I consulted the Yu-Gi-Oh! Wiki quite a few times. In the end to make it easier for me, I changed things a little so that Dreadscythe is summoned when Eatos is destroyed either by battle OR by card effect. That is what Dreadscythe's effect states on the Yu-Gi-Oh! Wiki. That part is in the anime effect text of Eatos as well, but I saw no point in having it there, so in the end I guess I didn't change too much.

As for Lunar Wing Dragon, that was another spontaneous creation of my imagination, like Saki and Hitomi. The name of that card's attack was borrowed from the name of one of Sailor Moon's attacks. Also, Maiden of the Moonlight's transformation into Lunar Wing Dragon is based off of how the characters of Kero and Yue from Card Captor Sakura transformed into their true guardian forms. Anyway, I once again apologize for the length of this chapter. I'll try my best to make the next one shorter.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	12. Striker the Earth Duelist

**Author's Note:** In this chapter we take a little break from all the stuff involving Tamao and the Orichalcos and get to know one of the OCs I made up for this story. There will also be a special guest star in this chapter, though he only appears in a flashback.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 11: Striker the Earth Duelist

The seventh day of the tournament had been relatively uneventful. All day Jaden had been thinking about what had happened with Saki, the former Miator student he defeated the previous day. Saki's story had clearly revealed that Tamao was behind the darkness that was consuming Miator, that fact he could no longer deny. But what Jaden couldn't figure out was why Tamao was spreading this darkness. There had to be a reason other than the fact that the power of the Orichalcos was twisting her mind. Jaden had decided to go out by the lake to clear his thoughts, unaware that he was being watched.

"So we finally meet again Jaden Yuki." A voice suddenly called, causing Jaden to turn around.

The one who had spoken to Jaden was a tomboyish Spica student with short black hair. An arrogant smirk was on her face. Jaden recognized the girl right away as Kaname Kenjo, a member of the Spica student council. Kaname was one of the few people on Astraea island he did not like, mainly because of her attempts to assault Hikari the previous year.

"I'm really not in the mood to deal with you right now Kaname." Jaden told the Spica student.

"You aren't still mad about what I tried to do to little Hikari last year, are you?" Kaname asked, still with an arrogant smirk. "That's all in the past, and I've seen the error of my ways."

"I find that hard to believe." Jaden said as he narrowed his eyes at Kaname. "What do you want?"

"Okay, I'll get to the point." Kaname told him. "I want to get even with you. You may have pointed out that my attempts to seduce Hikari to try and become Etolie were the coward's way, but I still want to pay you back for the defeat you handed me when we first met. Plus if I beat you right now I'll have a spot in the finals."

"Like I told you before, I'm in no mood to deal with you. So just get lost." Jaden told her.

"I'm not giving up that easily." Kaname said confidently. "Don't tell me you're afraid to face me."

"I'm not afraid Kaname." Jaden replied. "But if you were to duel me right now you'd probably regret it."

"I'll take my chances." Kamane said smugly.

"Not so fast." A voice interrupted.

Both Jaden and Kaname turned to see Striker standing nearby. Clive was standing behind him.

"Who are you?" an annoyed Kaname demanded.

"My name's Jason Morgan." Striker answered, introducing himself. "But you can call me Striker. And before you and Jaden start going at it, I'd like a shot at you."

"And why should I waste my time dueling you?" Kaname asked.

"Well it wouldn't necessarily be a waste." Striker answered. "I heard that you have fifty points, the same as me. If I beat you I'm in the finals. I also heard from a student I beat that you were up to be the Etolie last year, and quite frankly I'd like to see just how good you are."

"I see, well I'm afraid you'll have to actually get to the finals if you want to duel me." Kaname said with an amused expression. "Once I beat your friend Jaden I'll be in the finals, and I'll have had my revenge."

"Not necessarily. Jaden has ten more points than you do." Striker pointed out. "Even if you do beat him he'll still have a slim shot at getting into the finals too. Which means you might end up dueling him twice. If you beat me you'll only have to face Jaden once. So how 'bout it, you think you can take me?"

"Hmm… okay, I'll take you on." Kaname finally agreed. "But be ready to swallow that pride of yours."

With that, Striker and Kaname prepared to face each other. Jaden meanwhile went over to join Clive on the sidelines.

"You don't seem to like that girl too much Fusion Master." Clive commented. "Something happen between you two?"

"It's a long story." Jaden answered.

When Striker and Kaname's life points were both at 4000, the duel began. Striker had the first draw.

"For my first move I summon Giant Rat in Defense Mode!" Striker announced. An oversized and very plump rat appeared on the field in front of Striker. "I'll finish up by setting one card on the field. That ends my turn."

"Prepare to change whatever plans you've had." Kaname said as she drew her first card. "I activate the Spell card, Card Destruction. Now we have to discard our hands and draws new ones from our decks. And since three of my monsters were discarded by an effect, I can summon them to the field. So say hello to Goldd, Wu-Lord of Dark World, Sillva, Warlord of Dark World, and Beiige, Vanguard of Dark World."

Three demonic creatures appeared on Kaname's side of the field. The first one, Goldd, was large and very muscular. Most of his body was gold in color like his name and he had a pair of bat-like wings on his back. In his hands Goldd carried a gigantic axe. The second demon, Sillva, was almost as muscular as Goldd and had a pair of bat-like wings on his back that hung like a cape. A sliver blade was attached to the sides of both his hands and he had a skeletal face. The third demon, Beiige, was also muscular and had a metal band over his eyes. In his hands Beiige carried a bladed spear.

Upon seeing these monsters Jaden had a brief flashback to the time when he and his friends from his old academy went into the Duel Monsters dimension to save Jessie, a trip which resulted in his friends being sacrificed in a ritual by Brron, the Mad King of Dark World, and Jaden himself becoming the Supreme King. Yubel appeared behind Jaden with an expression of concern on her face.

"You okay?" Yubel asked.

"I'm fine Yubel." Jaden whispered.

"You say something mate?" Clive asked.

"Huh? Oh, just talking to myself." Jaden told him. "I'm just not a big fan of Dark World monsters."

"Yeah, those things give me the creeps too." Clive agreed, not knowing that Jaden had a bigger reason for disliking the Dark World monsters.

"Beiige, pierce that rat with Dark World Spear!" kaname commanded back in the duel.

Beiige charged forward and drove his spear into the Giant Rat's chest. The rat collapsed to the ground and burst into triangles of golden light.

"Pretty good move." Striker commented with a confident smile. "But when my Giant Rat is destroyed in battle I can summon an Earth Attribute monster with 1500 ATK from my deck in Attack Mode. So say hello to Alligator's Sword!"

Appearing in place of the Giant Rat was a humanoid alligator wearing black armor and carrying a sword and shield.

"A lot of good that thing will do you." Kaname said smugly. "Goldd, cut that thing to shreds with Dark World Axe!"

Goldd began charging at Alligator's Sword and raised his axe high in the air.

"I activate my Trap, Magic Arm Shield!" Striker announced. "Since I have a monster being attacked, I can grab one of your monsters and make it the target. So I choose Sillva, Warlord of Dark World!"

The shield of Alligator's Sword transformed and a mechanical arm popped out of the center and grabbed Sillva, pulling him in front of the warrior alligator. Just as Goldd brought down his axe, Sillva reacted by slashing Goldd in the chest with one of his blades. Both attacks hit and the two demons were destroyed as a result, shattering into triangles of gold light.

"Since your Dark World twins both had 2300 ATK points, they ended up destroying each other." Striker pointed out. "I just killed two birds with one stone."

"You'll pay for that!" Kaname declared with a very irritated expression. "I set two cards on the field and end my turn!"

"Striker certainly is confident." Jaden commented.

"He's a pretty laid back duelist." Clive told Jaden. "He usually likes to lets his opponents get a bit of a lead, but when he sees a weak point he strikes right at it. That's why every one calls him Striker."

"You know, I really like this island." Striker commented as he drew his next card. "This lake, the trees, the fields that go on for miles, it's all beautiful."

"Are you some sort of nature lover?" Kaname asked, still sounding irritated.

"I guess I'd have to say yes to that question." Striker answered. "I love the outdoors. There was a huge forest around the Duel Academy I went to. Usually when I wasn't dueling I'd spend my time outside in that forest. It was a major change from where I used to live. I grew up in the city, a real poor part. My mom walked out on me when I was five, and my dad wasn't exactly an ideal father figure. I pretty much had nobody, and I was mad most of the time. I took out my anger on the streets, sometimes in duels, sometimes in fights. But day a guy came along and changed all that…"

* * *

_Five years before on a rainy day in the city, a young Striker was standing over a young and rather scrawny young man with glasses he had defeated in a duel and knocked to the ground._

_"A bet's a bet you little twerp, now hand over that card." Striker demanded. "Otherwise the next time you duel will be from a wheelchair."_

_"Please, my grandmother gave me that card for my birthday." The young man begged._

_"Then you shouldn't have lost." Striker told him in an impatient tone. "Now fork it over."_

_"Hold it right there!" a voice interrupted._

_Striker turned to see a man standing not too far away who looked to be in his mid twenties with long blond hair wearing a black jacket, light-blue t-shirt, and blue jeans. A brown bag was sling over his right shoulder._

_"I don't know who the hell you are, but get lost!" Striker told the stranger. "This is none of your business!"_

_"I'm making it my business." The stranger told Striker. "I don't like seeing guys picking on people who're weaker than them."_

_"Then get lost and you won't have to see it!" Striker told the stranger._

_"I don't think so." The stranger said defiantly as he approached. "I'm not the type of guy who walks away when he sees someone being picked on. Now lay off him."_

_"Or what, you'll beat me up?" Striker said in a tone that indicated he wasn't afraid._

_"Well I could, but I don't think you'd like going to the hospital." The stranger said with a confident smirk. "Plus I don't think you'd learn anything from it. I have another idea. I notice that you have a duel disk on your arm."_

_"Yeah, I got it in a Kaiba Corp giveaway, so what?" Striker demanded. In response the stranger pulled a duel disk of his own out of his bag._

_"How 'bout this? You and I duel right here, right now." The stranger suggested. "If I win you leave that kid alone."_

_"And what happens if I win?" Striker asked._

_"Well let me see." The stranger said as he stroked his chin in thought. "I have a few rare cards in my deck that most people would pay an arm and a leg for. If by some unlikely chance you actually beat me, I'll hand one over to you."_

_"Wait, just one?" Striker said sounding insulted. "I should get all of those cards for wasting my time with you."_

_"Okay, if you insist." The stranger confidently replied. "So what do you say kid, think you can take me on?"_

_"You've got yourself a bet." Striker told the stranger. "And by the end of this duel you'll learned that your mouth shouldn't write checks you can't cash."_

_"Funny, I was thinking that you're about to learn the same lesson." The stranger said smugly as both of them activated their duel disks._

_Five turns into the duel, Striker had no cards on the field and only 1900 life points left. The stranger on the other hand had summoned a large slender back dragon with piercing red eyes._

_"Attack this chump directly Red-Eyes!" the stranger commanded. "Inferno Fire Blast!"_

_The dragon reared back its head and then shot a massive red fireball from his mouth. The attack hit Striker and reduced his life points to zero. Striker stood there with an expression of shock on his face. The young man that Striker was threatening to beat up earlier had an expression of awe on his face after seeing the duel. The stranger meanwhile walked up to Striker._

_"That wasn't a bad duel." The stranger commented. "You've got some potential kid. With a little training you could actually become a good duelist."_

_"Yeah, whatever." Striker grumbled._

_"What I'm saying is that there's a place where they can teach you to become a good duelist." The stranger told him. "You've heard of Duel Academy, right?"_

_"Yeah, why?" Striker asked._

_"Well my sister works at one here in the states." The stranger explained. "It's not as fancy as the one that jerk Kaiba owns, but it's pretty good. I told her and the guy who runs the place that I'd send some new talent their way if I found any. I think you'd do well over there. What do you say kid?"_

_"…Why would you help me get into some academy?" Striker asked him after a moment._

_"Because I was kinda like you at your age." The stranger answered. "I went around looking for people to beat up because I thought it'd make me feel better about myself. I hated myself, but one day this kid who I used to pick on took a beating for me and called me his friend. At the time I didn't think anyone would waste time standing up for me, but I started to like myself after that. I figure if I showed you the same kind of kindness you might learn to like yourself too."_

_"…Fine, I'll try this Duel Academy thing for awhile." Striker finally agreed._

_"Great! Oh, here's a consolation prize for dueling me." The stranger said and then pulled a card out of his pocket and tossed it to Striker. "I already have a few other copies of that card, so feel free to use it."_

_Striker examined the card closely. It was a Trap card called Metalmorph._

_"Who are you anyway?" Siriker asked the stranger._

_"Oh yeah, forgot to introduce myself." The stranger realized. "The name's Joey Wheeler."_

* * *

"…After that day I packed my bags and headed to West Road Academy." Striker continued. "My dad wasn't sorry to see me go. After settling in, the homeroom teacher I had took my class on a little camping trip to a large hill out in the forest. One morning I got up early and saw the sun rising over the trees and in that moment I felt like I had come home. So yeah, I guess you could call me a nature lover."

"Look, I didn't ask for your life story." Kaname said in a very inpatient tone. "Will you just start your turn already?"

"Oh yeah, sorry. I tend to ramble on sometimes." Striker said with a slightly embarrassed smile. "Let me see… oh yeah. It's time you feel the power of the Earth! I play the Field Spell, Gaia Power!"

With that card the trees surrounding the area grew three times larger than they were before. The branches and leaves became so thick that they blocked out the sun.

"Gaia Power gives all Earth monsters on the field 500 extra ATK points." Striker explained. "Now I equip Alligator's Sword with the Spell card, Invigoration!"

Alligator's Sword glowed with a faint yellow aura and became slightly more muscular.

"Now Alligator's Sword is 2400." Striker pointed out. "Alligator's Sword, attack Beiige with Alligator's Sword Slash!"

The alligator warrior raised his sword and charged at Beiige.

"Not so fast Nature Boy! I activate my Trap, Hate Buster!" Kaname announced. "Both our monsters are destroyed and you take damage equal to the original ATK of your monster!"

Beiige suddenly exploded, taking Alligator's Sword with him. Striker's life points dropped to 2500.

"I figured it wouldn't be that easy." Striker commented. "For my next move I summon another Giant Rat in Defense Mode! Then I set two cards on the field and end my turn!"

A second Giant Rat identical to the first appeared on the field in front of Striker. Kaname drew her next card; a sinister smirk was on her face as she did so.

"I'm going to enjoy defeating you." Kaname declared. "Since I now have exactly three Dark Attribute monsters in my Graveyard, I now Special Summon Dark Armed Dragon!"

Appearing on the field was a pitch-black and very muscular dragon with well-developed arms, small wings, and a large chin.

"Now it's time to put an end to your little nature walk! I remove Goldd from my Graveyard to activate Dark Armed Dragon's effect and destroy one card on my opponent's field!" Kaname announced. "And the card I choose to destroy is Gaia Power!"

Dark Armed Dragon's right fist began to glow with a black aura. With a move of its arm the dragon fired a beam of black energy into the ground. The whole area was engulfed in an explosion of white light. When the light cleared the area around them had returned to normal.

"That was probably a good move in the long run." Clive commented on the sidelines. "A lot of Striker's monsters have pretty low ATK points on their own, but they're all Earth monsters, so Gaia Power would give them a major boost."

"It doesn't seem necessary though." Jaden commented. "Kaname looks like she's about to move in for the kill."

"Don't count Striker out just yet Fusion Master." Clive told him. "He still has quite a few tricks up his sleeve."

"Now I activate my Trap, Escape from the Dark Dimension!" Kaname announced. "With this card I summon Goldd, Wu-Lord of Dark World back to the field!"

A large portal that looked like it lead to a pitch-black realm appeared on the field. Goldd emerged from the portal carrying his axe. The portal closed up once the demon fully appeared.

"And now I summon Brron, Mad King of Dark World!" Kaname announced.

Appearing on the field was a slender grey demon with its arms chained together. A mad grin was on the demon's skeletal face. Jaden had yet another brief flashback when he saw Brron appear. He once again remembered dueling the Mad King, a duel in which most of his friends were sacrificed.

"You okay Fusion Master?" Clive asked with a tone of concern. "You look a little pale."

"I'm fine, I just really don't like the monster Kaname just played." Jaden said with a reassuring smile.

"After this duel you're going back to the guest house to rest." Yubel told Jaden. Jaden did not feel like arguing with her.

"Dark Armed Dragon, crush that annoying rat!" Kaname commanded. "Dark Crusher!"

The dragon reached out and grabbed the Giant Rat with its right claw. With a squeeze of Dark Armed Dragon's claw, the rat was crushed.

"Just like before, when Giant Rat is destroyed I can summon an Earth monster with 1500 or less ATK from my deck!" Striker announced. "So I summon Warrior Lady of the Wasteland!"

Appearing on the field was a woman with long blond hair wearing a dark-brown hat and tattered cloak, knee-high green boots, a short green skirt, and a tight green shirt that showed her mid drift. A sword was slung over her back.

"That's the best you can do?" Kaname laughed mockingly. "Brron tear her apart with Dark World Frenzy!"

The mad king broke the chains binding his arms together and lunged and the female warrior.

"I activate my Trap, Kunai With Chain!" Striker announced. "Not only does Warrior Lady gain an Equip card that gives her an extra 500 ATK points, but your Mad King of Dark World get switched to Defense Mode!"

Appearing in the Warrior Lady's hand was a chain with a three-pointed blade attached to the end. The warrior swung the blade around and whipped it around Brron's legs. With one strong yank Brron was pulled to the ground.

"Fine, but your little blond friend isn't safe yet." Kaname told him. "Goldd, slash her in two with Dark World Axe!"

With one swing of his massive axe, Goldd cut the Warrior Lady of the Wasteland in half. The two halves shattered into triangles of gold light. Striker's life points dropped to 1900 as a result.

"It's not over yet! When Warrior Lady of the Wasteland is destroyed, I can summon an Earth Attribute Warrior monster with 1500 or less ATK from my deck!" Striker announced. "So say hello to Obnoxious Celtic Guard!"

Appearing on the field where the Warrior Lady of the Wasteland was an elf warrior with light-green hair wearing a green helmet, a brown shirt under green armor, tan pants, and a blue cape. In his hands he carried a long sword.

"You're really starting to annoy me." Kaname said with an irritated expression. "I end my turn!"

"For my first move I play Pot of Greed and draw two more cards!" Striker announced after drawing his card. "Now it's time to take a trip back to nature. I play the Field Spell, Gaia Power!"

Again the forested area around them became overgrown with gigantic trees that blocked out the sun. Kaname's expression showed more irritation than before.

"Kaname is starting to lose her cool." Jaden commented on the sidelines. "She's bound to make a mistake if this keeps up."

"Now I activate a Trap, and it's a favorite of mine, Metalmorph!" Striker announced. "I equip this card to Obnoxious Celtic Guard!"

The elf warrior's green armor turned to a shining chrome, while his shirt turned black and his pants dark-grey. His cape turned white and gained a sparkling quality to it.

"Metalmorph gives Obnoxious Celtic Guard 300 extra ATK." Striker explained. "That plus the power boost from Gaia power makes his ATK 2200."

"Am I supposed to be impressed?" Kaname asked.

"You will be in a moment." Striker replied confidently. "But before that I activate Mystical Space Typhoon and destroy Escape from the Dark Dimension! And with that card gone, Goldd goes with it!"

A small twister appeared behind Goldd and destroyed the large representation of Kaname's Trap card. With the card gone, Goldd simply faded off the field.

"And now for the part that supposed to impress you!" Striker announced. "Because of Metalmorph, Obnoxious Celtic Guard gains half the ATK of whatever monster he attacks. So now he attacks Dark Armed Dragon and gains half of its 2400 ATK during the battle!"

The elf swordsman jumped into the air and slashed off the dragon's head. The attack reduced Kaname's life points to 3200.

"Well, since I don't have any cards left in my hand I end my turn." Striker announced. Kaname drew her next card.

"I set a monster and end my turn." Kaname announced. Striker drew his next card.

"I summon Alpha the Magnet Warrior in Attack Mode!" Striker announced.

Appearing on the field was a grey robotic warrior with a sword and shield. Horseshoe magnets made up parts of its armor, including a section that covered its face.

"Alpha, destroy Brron with Magnet Slash!" Striker commanded.

The magnet warrior charged and cut the fallen Brron in half with its sword. The two halves of the demon shattered and vanished.

"Obnoxious Celtic Guard, attack that set monster with Heavy Metal Sword!" Striker commanded.

The elf swordsman charged and brought down his sword on the other monster. As he swung the monster was revealed to be nothing more than an old clay pot. But when the pot shattered, a black specter with one giant eye came out and vanished into mist.

"The monster you destroyed was my Morphing Jar." Kaname explained. "Because you flipped it we now have to discard our hands and draw five new cards."

"Fine with me, I don't have a hand to discard." Striker pointed out.

"This is far from a good thing!" Kaname told him in a very annoyed tone. "Because one of the cards I have to discard is Kahkki, Guerilla of Dark World, which allows me to destroy one of your monsters. And the monster I choose is Obnoxious Celtic Guard!"

A grey barrel-shaped demon suddenly appeared and lunged at the elf swordsman and destroyed him in an explosion.

"That's not all though!" Kaname announced another one of the cards I have to discard is Beiige, Vanguard of Dark World, which means he gets summoned to the field!"

The spear-wielding demon reappeared on the field.

"Okay then, I guess I'll set two cards on the field and end my turn!" Striker announced.

"I'm going to end this right now!" Kaname declared. "First I summon Zure, Knight of Dark World!"

Appearing on the field was a grey skeletal faced demon in a dark-blue cape wielding a sword.

"Now I activate Dark World Lightning!" Kaname announced. "I destroy one of your set Spell and Trap cards and then discard a card!" A bolt of purple lightning came down from the sky and destroyed one of Striker's two set cards. "The card I discarded was Gren, Tactician of Dark World, which lets me destroy an opponent's Spell or Trap card. And the card I choose is Gaia Power!"

An explosion of white light once again covered the area, and when the light cleared the forest had returned to normal.

"Now the ATK of your Magnet Warrior is back to 1400, making it weak enough for my monsters to destroy." Kaname pointed out. "Zure, attack the Magnet Warrior with Sword of Dark World!"

Zure raised his sword and charged at Alpha.

"I activate my Trap, Mirror Force!" Striker announced. "Now all of your monsters get destroyed!"

Just as Zure's sword was about to hit Alpha, it hit a barrier that caused a bolt of energy to reflect back and hit both Zure and Beiige. The two demons were blown to bits. An expression of shock appeared on Kaname's face.

"You know you could've used Gren's effect on my other Trap card." Striker pointed out. "But then I guess Gaia Power still would've been on the field and Alpha would've been to strong for either of them. You had to take a gamble, but too bad for you it didn't pay off."

"I… end my turn." Kaname reluctantly announced. Striker drew his next card, and a smile appeared on his face when he saw what it was.

"This duel has been fun, but I guess it's over now." Striker declared. "I combine Alpha the Magnet Warrior on the field with Beta the Magnet Warrior and Gamma the Magnet Warrior in my hand to create Valkyrion the Magna Warrior!"

Appearing on the field next to Alpha was a yellow robot with the two halves of a horseshoe magnet for horns, and a pink robot with wings. The three robots disassembled and the pieces recombined into an even larger robot.

"Valkyion has 3500 ATK, which is more than enough to wipe you out!" Striker announced. "Valkyrion, attack Kaname directly with Magnet Saber!"

Valkyrion flew forward and slashed at Kaname with his sword. The attack reduced Kaname's life points to zero. Valkyrion then vanished and the number on Kaname's point counter dropped to zero, causing it to beep. At the same time the number on Striker's point counter rose to one hundred and flashed green.

"That was a good duel." Striker said as he went over to Kaname and offered his hand. Kaname slapped Striker's hand away.

"I make you pay for this one day!" Kaname spat before storming off. Striker shrugged and walked over to Jaden and Clive.

"That was an awesome duel." Jaden told Striker.

"Yeah. Hey, sorry if I stole your opponent." Striker said to Jaden.

"I didn't want to duel Kaname anyway." Jaden reassured him. "It's a long story."

Their conversation was interrupted by the noise of a loud horn that could be hard over the island.

"Attention all tournament participants!" announced a voice over what the three deduced to be an intercom. Jaden immediately recognized the voice as Amane's. "We now have two people who have made it to the finals. The first is visiting pro duelist, Jason Morgan, better known by many as Striker. The second is a member of Miator's student council, Jane Hawthorn. There are now only six spots left in the finals, so the rest of you better get moving. That is all."

"Well, it looks like I'm not alone." Striker commented. "Isn't that Jane girl part of that group they call the Four Witches?"

"Yeah, and we better be ready to face her." Jaden told both of them with a serious expression.

* * *

**Author's Note:** The deck that Striker used is based on a deck that I used in one of the old Yu-Gi-Oh! video games for the Gameboy Advance. Early on in this story's development I had thought of having Striker wield The Fang of Critias, and also have Clive wield The Claw of Hermos. But I decided not to do that because I thought it'd be too much like the Waking the Dragons (Doma) arc of the original anime, and as I've said before I want this story to be a little different. It's a safe bet that both Striker and Clive will show up in future GX stories.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	13. Reasons

**Author's Note:** This chapter takes a little break from the dueling and explores our antagonists a little bit more.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 12: Reasons

The eighth day of the tournament had arrived. The night before Jaden had another nightmare about the atrocities he committed as the Supreme King as a result of watching Striker and Kaname's duel. That morning Yubel and Banner insisted that Jaden take the day off from dueling to relax. Jaden told them that he couldn't afford to rest with the threat of the Orichalcos looming over the island, not to mention the whole world. But Timaeus and Critias appeared before him and told him that he could afford to take one day to rest, pointing out that he would be no good to anyone if he pushed himself too hard. So reluctantly Jaden agreed to take the day off.

That morning, Jaden was watching Jessie duel Momomi Kiyashiki, another member of the Spica student council and Kaname's girlfriend. Momomi assisted in Kaname's attempts to assault Hikari, so Jaden was not very fond of her. It was clear to Jaden that the duel was about to end. Jessie had summoned Rainbow Dragon, and Momomi had nothing on the field to protect her.

"Rainbow Dragon, finish this duel with Rainbow Refraction!" Jessie commanded.

The dragon opened its mouth and fired a beam of rainbow colored light at Momomi. The attack reduced Momomi's life points to zero. After Rainbow Dragon vanished, the number on Momomi's point counter dropped to zero, which caused the counter to beep as a signal that she was out of the tournament. At the same time, the number on Jessie's point counter climbed to one hundred and flashed green, signaling that he had made it to the finals.

"I'll make you pay for this one day!" Momomi declared before storming off in defeat.

"Great duel Jessie." Jaden said as he walked up to the Crystal Beast user.

"Thanks J." Jessie told him. "That girl really is a sore loser."

"She's probably ticked off because she was planning to up her reputation by beating you and it backfired." Jaden guessed.

"Yeah, I guess that's what we get for being so good at this game." Jessie theorized. "But that's all part of the fun too."

Their conversation was interrupted by the horn of the intercom that was strung all over the island for the tournament.

"Attention all tournament participants!" Amane's voice announced over the intercom. "We now have two more people that have made it to the finals. The first is visiting pro duelist, Jessie Anderson, and the second is visiting pro duelist, Clive Winston. As of now there are only four spots left in the finals, so you might want to get a move on duelists."

"Well, looks like almost all of our little group has made it to the finals." Jessie commented. "Hey, isn't one of those Four Witches from Miator in the finals too?"

"Yeah, so we better be careful." Jaden replied. "And she probably won't be the only one."

* * *

Meanwhile at the meeting hall of the Miator student council, Tamao and the Four Witches had gathered to discuss the developments of the tournament.

"Before we begin, I would like to congratulate Jane for making it to the finals." Tamao began as she addressed the group. "Let's hope that the rest of us do just as well. Now then, down to business. Hiyori, what is the status of The Great Leviathan?"

"We are over half way to our goal Lady Tamao." Hiyori answered as she stood up from her chair. "The collector is generating twice as much negative psychic energy as it's taking in. At this rate we shall resurrect the Leviathan by the end of the tournament."

"Excellent." Tamao said with a pleased expression.

"I still don't get how this thing works." Mika interrupted. "How does the collector put out twice as much energy as it takes in?"

"I'll explain it one more time." Hiyori sighed. "The collector takes in all the negative psychic energy of those in the vicinity, which covers all of Miator and part of the Strawberry Dorms, and sends it into the core of the machine, the fragment of The Great Leviathan itself. As the Leviathan gains more strength, it sends out twice the amount of energy at regular intervals. In short, The Great Leviathan is essentially feeding itself."

"Okay, I think I get it now." Mika told her.

"Well then, if Mika has finally figured out how we are trying to achieve our master plan, we should move onto our next order of business." Tamao said to the group. "Jaden Yuki still poses a threat to our plans. We must prevent him from reaching the finals."

"Why don't you send me after him again Lady Tamao?" Mika suggested. "He blindsided me with that dragon of his last time, but this time I'm ready for him."

"With all due respect Lady Tamao, I think we need approach this enemy with more strategy." Hiyori interrupted. "If you will allow me to do some research on Jaden Yuki, I believe I can come up with a strategy that can defeat him."

"Very well, I shall leave it to you for now Hiyori." Tamao told the green-haired genius of the Four Witches. "The rest of us shall focus on getting into the finals. This meeting is adjourned."

* * *

A little later in the day, Hiyori had gone to her room at the Strawberry Dorms. She had gotten out her laptop and was busy looking up any information she could find on Jaden, as well as the Legendary Dragons. Hiyori doubted that she could find anything on the dragons, but since they were the reason why Jaden was such a threat, she had to try and find something. As she worked, Mika suddenly entered the room, though she was not surprised as they were roommates. Though she did find Mika's presence to be a distraction.

"Don't mind me Hiyori, I just need to change into a new uniform." Mika told her roommate. "Some spineless little first-year in the cafeteria who wasn't watching where she was going ran right into me and spilled chicken soup all over me."

As Mika stripped off her soiled uniform, Hiyori blushed when she saw Mika's nude back. Immediately she averted her gaze and tried to focus on her work. The simple fact was that Hiyori was attracted to Mika, but she could not afford to act on them. A romantic relationship would only distract her from her work. Still, no matter how hard Hiyori tried, there were times when she found that she could not stop thinking about Mika.

"You know Hiyori, I really admire you." Mika suddenly said as she changed into her other uniform.

"Why is that?" Hiyori asked as a heavy blush came to her face.

"Because you're so calm and level-headed." Mika explained as she finished changing. "You never let your emotions get the better of you. Me, I fly off the handle pretty easily. But you, you're like ice. I kinda wish I could be a little more like you."

"Well, I've just learned to focus myself over the years." Hiyori said, trying to hide how flattered she was by Mika's compliment. "As I've told you before, human emotions only cloud the mind and get in the way of progress."

"You could be on to something there." Mika said with a shrug. "Well, I better go crush more duelists if I want to get into the finals. Later."

"Um, good luck." Hiyori told Mika.

Mika responded by giving a wave as she left. Hiyori meanwhile tried to continue her research. She couldn't believe that she had wished Mika luck. After all, luck was merely an illusion. Therefore it was unnecessary for her to say such a thing. Even so however, Hiyori found that she really did hope that Mika would do well.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tomoyo was in the middle of facing a Spica duelist. Already Tomoyo had summoned Swift Goblin of the South and had decimated her opponent's deck with its effect. With one final attack from the goblin, her opponent's life points fell to zero. The number on Tomoyo's point counter rose to one hundred and flashed green, signaling that she had made it to the finals. With the duel over and her place in the finals assured, Tomoyo calmly walked away.

As Tomoyo walked, she found herself reflecting on why she was helping Tamao's cause. And the simple fact was that she wasn't doing it for Tamao at all. As far back as she could remember Tomoyo's father had trained her in the art of combat. She never knew her father's full reasons for doing this. The few times she did ask, her father simply told her that it was so he could get back at those who he thought had taken the life of her mother. He also told Tomoyo that if she loved him, she would help him in his revenge. So Tomoyo blindly did as her father told her, but not once did her father show her any love.

When Tomoyo was about ten, her father was arrested and she was placed into foster care. Fortunately the family that had adopted her was moderately wealthy. About three years later Tomoyo had stumbled into the world of Duel Monsters, which she found that she greatly enjoyed. However she found that she never had a purpose of her own. Before she only worked to carry out her father's revenge against those he blamed for her mother's death. That all changed however when Tomoyo came to Miator.

In the beginning Tomoyo only came to Miator because her adoptive parents told her it was a good place to hone her skills as a duelist. Then she met her roommate, Jane Hawthorn. Jane captivated Tomoyo the moment she saw her. She did not know if what she was feeling was love or not, but all Tomoyo knew was that she wanted to be close to Jane. Unfortunately, Jane wasn't making that easy.

The problem was that Jane was cold and distant. No matter what Tomoyo tried, Jane always pushed her away. Then came the day that Tamao came before her and asked for her help in remaking the world. Tomoyo couldn't care less about any mad scheme to change the world. But when she learned that Jane was involved, Tomoyo immediately decided to join Tamao's cause. Tomoyo knew that Jane might be put in danger since she and Tamao were messing with some sort of magic. So she swore to do whatever it took to protect her, no matter what might get in her way, or who she had to destroy.

* * *

At about the same time that Tomoyo was having her duel, Tamao too was looking for an opponent. She wasn't going to try and go after Jaden. After all, with the power of the Legendary Dragons behind him, Jaden was a formidable opponent, and she couldn't afford to take any risks at the moment. Tamao had a completely different target in mind, and that target was Chikaru. Ever since the second day of the tournament when she saw Chikaru and Shion confess their feelings for one another, she saw it as another unfairness to the world, one that needed to be corrected. And Tamao would correct it once she trapped Chikaru's soul and used it to help resurrect The Great Leviathan.

Just as Tamao spotted Chikaru, another girl passed in front of her. From her clothing, Tamao could tell that she wasn't a student on the island. And yet Tamao was certain that she recognized her. That short tied back red hair was unmistakable to her. Tamao followed after the girl silently for a few minutes, but after awhile she found that she could no longer remain silent.

"Nagisa?" Tamao called to the redhead.

The girl turned around to face Tamao, and when she did Tamao could see that the girl was not Nagisa. Though the resemblance was uncanny.

"Um, I think you have me mixed up with someone else." The redhead told Tamao. "But since you're here maybe you could duel me. I'm fifty points away from the finals. So how 'bout it?"

Tamao could believe how foolish she had been. She couldn't believe that she mistook the girl before her as Nagisa, and even if it were it just would've rubbed salt in an old wound. However, Tamao did see this odd meeting as a good opportunity.

"Fifty points you say?" Tamao asked. "That's just the amount of points that I have. Okay then, I'll take you on. And it'll be an all or nothing match."

"Sounds good to me." The redhead agreed, and with that the two of the activated their duel disks.

In the first turn of the duel, Tamao activated The Seal of Orichalcos. Within a few short turns, Tamao had defeated the redhead. The Nagisa look-a-like was terrified as the seal closed around her. After a column of green light shot into the air, the soulless body of the redhead fell to the ground face first. The number on her point counter dropped to zero. At the same time, the number on Tamao's point counter rose to one hundred and flashed green. Tamao walked away with a very satisfied smile on her face.

* * *

A little later that day, Jaden was sitting out by the lake in deep thought. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of the intercom horn.

"Attention all tournament participants!" Amane's voice called over the intercom. "Two more duelists have now reached the finals. The first is Miator student council member, Tomoyo Mikage. The second is Miator student council president, Tamao Suzumi. As of now there are only two spots left in the finals, so the rest of you really need to take your game to the next level if you want to make it. Good luck!"

"Well, I guess we shouldn't be surprised." Yubel said as she appeared next to Jaden. "If Tamao really is behind all this, then it's no surprise that she made it to the finals."

"I wonder if I should've gone after Tamao sooner." Jaden thought out loud, not that he needed to with Yubel.

"That probably wouldn't have been a good idea." Yubel told him. "If she's as powerful as we think she is, it would've been suicide to charge at her blindly. This way we have a better chance of coming up with a plan to beat her."

"I guess you're right." Jaden agreed. "I just hope that whoever duels Tamao before we do doesn't get hurt."

* * *

A little later at the meeting hall of Miator's student council, Hiyori was checking on the fragment of The Great Leviathan. At that moment Tamao walked in and presented The Seal of Orichalcos card to the psychic collector that was being used to resurrect the Leviathan. A green light shot from the card into a panel at the top of the machine. A picture of the redhead that Tamao had defeated appeared on the panel.

"Congratulations on making it to the finals Lady Tamao." Hiyori said to her mistress. "The soul you collected should put the resurrection far sooner than last predicted."

"Thank you Hiyori." Tamao said to her underling. "Have you completed your research on Jaden Yuki?"

"I have my lady, and I believe I have found a way to not only beat him, but seal the power of the Legendary Dragons as well." Hiyori answered. "It only took some minor modifications to my deck."

"Very well then Hiyori, I will leave knocking Jaden Yuki out of the tournament to you." Tamao told her.

"I will get to it as soon as possible" Hiyori said with a bow.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Tomoyo was the hardest character in the Four Witches to develop. I was never really sure what her backstory was supposed to be. The little summary of her backstory in this chapter was rewritten a couple of times, and even after rewriting it I didn't go very in-depth. I figure that I'll bring Tomoyo and the other members of the Four Witches back in a future GX story, at which point I'll develop her backstory a little more (because I still haven't figured out a lot of the details of it). But I think the details relevant to this story are all here. As for Jane, we'll get to find out her backstory during the finals.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	14. Hiyori the Cunning

**Author's Note:** This chapter didn't take as long to write as I thought. Neither did the summary for the duel. It was actually a blast to write, as I've never done a duel like this before.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 13: Hiyori the Cunning

The ninth day of the tournament had arrived. With the qualifying round almost over, Jaden knew that he needed to find an opponent to face quickly. Otherwise he could not make it to the finals and stop Tamao. As Jaden walked the grounds of Lilum looking for an opponent to face, he ran across a familiar face, a Lilum student with light-blue hair he knew as Hitomi. Deciding that he could spare a few minutes, Jaden went over to Hitomi to see how she was doing.

"Hey there." Jaden called to Hitomi, getting her attention.

"Oh, Jaden Yuki." Hitomi said with a look of surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was hoping to find an opponent but I've had no luck." Jaden answered as he rubbed the back of his hair.

"That's not surprising." Hitomi told him. "The only student from Lilum who's still in the tournament that I know of is President Chikaru. I'm sure she'd duel you if you challenged her though."

"Actually, Chikaru and I already agreed not to duel each other until we made it to the finals." Jaden explained. "I guess I'll try Spica again. So how are you and Saki doing?"

"We're doing pretty well." Hitomi answered. "Saki's doing a lot better since she transferred to Lilum. She's tired but more like her old self. I was actually on my way to see her."

"Mind if I tag along?" Jaden asked.

"Not at all, I'm sure she'd like seeing you again." Hitomi replied.

After a few short minutes of walking, Jaden and Hitomi found Saki sitting against a tree asleep. Guardian Eatos and Maiden of the Moonlight were there in spirit form standing near her, though they were only visible to Jaden. Jaden guessed that the two Duel Monsters were watching over Saki. As Hitomi and Jaden approached the two monsters vanished. Jaden stopped a few feet away from the tree, but Hitomi continued her approach. When she got close enough, Hitomi bent over Saki and kissed her on the forehead. Saki soon stirred and opened her eyes.

"Hello my love." Hitomi whispered.

"Hi." Saki said before wrapping an arm around Hitomi and kissing her on the lips.

After a moment Saki got to her feet. Right away Jaden could notice a change in Saki. She looked far more rested than the last time Jaden saw her. Saki soon noticed that Jaden was standing near by. After Saki put her arm around Hitomi's shoulder the couple approached him.

"I didn't expect to see you today." Saki told Jaden.

"I was just around looking for someone to duel and thought I'd see how you were doing." Jaden explained. "That Lilum uniform looks good on you."

"Thank you. To tell you the truth I'm still getting used to it." Saki admitted. "Actually I'm still getting used to the fact that I even transferred to Lilum. But what matters is I'm a lot closer to Hitomi now."

"I'm glad to see you and Hitomi are doing well." Jaden told her. "Well, I better find another opponent if I want to make it into the finals. See you two later."

With that, Jaden began to walk away. But as he did, Saki's expression became more serious.

"Jaden wait!" Saki called, causing the wandering duelist to stop and turn back around. "Please… stop Tamao and the Four Witches. You might be the only one who can."

Jaden nodded and continued on his way. Saki and Hitomi went their own way after a moment. As they walked, all three of them were unaware that Hiyori was watching them.

* * *

A few minutes later, Jaden had moved onto the grounds of Spica. He was still having no luck finding an opponent. Yubel appeared next to Jaden as he walked.

"You know you could challenge one of the Four Witches." Yubel suggested. "I'm sure beating one of them would get you into the finals easily."

"I don't want to start a fight with them if I don't have to." Jaden told her.

"True, but we are running out of time to get into the finals." Yubel pointed out. "Plus most of the people still in the tournament are afraid to face you because they know what you're capable of. But the Four Witches have been gunning for you ever since you beat Mika. I don't think you really have a choice anymore."

"I guess you're right." Jaden agreed as he thought about what Yubel had told him.

As he continued to walk, a large rock was suddenly thrown in his path. Jaden immediately stopped and looked around to see if he could spot who threw the rock. He found no one. Jaden then picked up the rock and found there was a piece of paper wrapped around it. He removed the paper from the rock and found there was a note written on it.

'If you want to see the two Lilum student you were talking to earlier alive and well again, you will come to the lake as soon as you finish reading this. You have twenty minutes to get here.'

Jaden doubted very much that the note was a prank. It seemed very clear that Saki and Hitomi were in danger. As fast as Jaden's legs could carry him, he immediately ran off towards the lake. After what seemed like a sixteen minute run, Jaden finally arrived at the lake. As he stood and caught his breath, a figure stepped out from behind a tree. She was a Miator student with dark-green hair ending just above the shoulders wearing glasses. Right away Jaden recognized the girl as one of the Four Witches.

"You arrived as quickly as I expected." The girl told Jaden. "I should introduce myself. I am Hiyori Sonoda, a member of Miator's student council, which I believe is more colorfully referred to by most as the Four Witches."

"Where're Saki and Hitomi?" Jaden demanded.

"Back at the dorms I assume." Hiyori calmly replied. "The note I sent you was a rouse to lure you here."

"If you wanted to challenge me you should've just told me instead of playing games!" Jaden angrily told her.

"I wasn't entirely sure if you'd except." Hiyori coldly explained. "It seemed logical that you'd wish to avoid a duel with myself and my colleagues if possible."

"I have no choice but to face you and Tamao if I want to stop all of you from destroying the world!" Jaden pointed out.

"I see, so you actually know something of Lady Tamao's plans." Hiyori said with a slight look of surprise. "In that case I should've been more direct. Of course this means that you're an even bigger threat than we first thought. In any case, both you and I have sixty points. The combined total would be more than enough for one of us to enter the finals. Since you've revealed that you are trying to stop Lady Tamao, I assume you'll accept my challenge."

"Game on!" Jaden replied, and with that the two of them activated their duel disks.

"I shall go first." Hiyori announced as she drew her first card. "I summon Big Shield Guardna in Defense Mode!"

Appearing on the field in front of Hiyori was a muscular tan warrior with long black hair hiding behind a giant purple and gold shield.

"I set two more cards on the field and end my turn!" Hiyori announced.

Jaden drew his first card and looked carefully at his hand. His hand already contained Wildheart and Bladedge, so he was already set up for a Fusion summon. Unfortunately he did not have Polymerization. The rest of his hand consisted of Fake Hero, Elemental Burstinatrix, and Elemental Hero Sparkman. Of course even if he could combine Wildheart and Bladedge, Jaden knew that it would be enough to penetrate Big Shield Guardna's 2600 DEF points. But Jaden saw that the card he had drawn might be just what he needed.

"First I summon Elemental Hero Sparkman in Attack Mode!" Jaden announced. The blue and gold armored electrical hero appeared on the field. "Next I equip Sparkman with Spark Blaster!"

A large dark-blue pistol-like weapon appeared in Sparkman's right hand. Several wires popped out from the hero's forearm and connected to the blaster.

"Now I activate the effect of Spark Blaster!" Jaden announced. "Spark Blaster lets me change the battle position of an opponent's monster up to three times. So now I switch Big Shield Guardna to Attack Mode!"

Sparkman raised his gun and fired a bullet of electrical energy at Hiyori's monster. Big Shield Guardna suddenly stood up and placed his shield at his side.

"Your Guardna may have 2600 DEF, but his ATK is only 100!" Jaden pointed out. "Which means Sparkman is more than a match for him!"

"Activate Trap, Gravity Bind!" Hiyori suddenly announced. "Now monsters of level four or above can attack."

A wave of green energy quickly spread over the field. Suddenly Sparkman fell to his knees and looked as if he couldn't lift up his arms. Big Shield Guardna also fell to his knees and look as if he was unable to move. Jaden could see that it wasn't going to be as easy to get through Hiyori's defenses as he thought.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced once he realized there wasn't anything more he could do. Hiyori drew her next card.

"I activate Orichalcos Ritual!" Hiyori announced. "I sacrifice my Big Shield Guardna and your Elemental Hero Sparkman to summon Wicked Tree of the East in Defense Mode!"

The mystic circle of the Orichalcos Ritual appeared on the ground. Lightning shot up from the circle and slowly deconstructed both monsters bit by bit. When both monsters were finally out of their misery, a pillar of black flames erupted into the air. The fire soon cleared and revealed what looked to be a gnarled old willow tree with leafless branches. Two holes that looked like eyes and a third that looked like an evil grin were in the front of the trunk. Meanwhile, Hiyori's eyes began glowing red.

"Your tree can't attack with your Gravity Bind on the field." Jaden pointed out.

"Attacking isn't the only way to win a duel." Hiyori told him. "My Wicked Tree of the East has an ATK of 2100, which can defeat most low level monsters. But its DEF is 2900, which makes it a better defensive monster. Furthermore, Wicked Tree has an ability that is far more valuable for defensive monsters, as you shall soon see. For my next move I summon Mystical Elf in Defense Mode!"

Appearing on the field next to the tree was a female elf with blue skin and long blond hair. But the elf's body suddenly twisted and changed, becoming a tree with a twisted version of the elf's face on the front of the trunk.

"What just happened?" Jaden asked with an expression of disgust on his face.

"Wicked Tree of the East turns all my monsters into plants, but that is unimportant." Hiyori explained. "You should turn your attention to the branches of the Wicked Tree."

Jaden did as Hiyori suggested and saw what looked like a round purple fruit with a face twisted in agony grow on one of the branches.

"What is that thing?" Jaden asked.

"That is a Wicked Fruit Counter." Hiyori explained. "The Wicked Tree grows one each time one of us summons a monster. Furthermore, all of my monsters gain 300 DEF points for each counter that has grown. So as of now my Wicked Tree has 3200 DEF, and my Mystical Elf has 2300 DEF."

"I'm guessing there's more to it than that though." Jaden assumed.

"Correct Mr. Yuki." Hiyori replied. "During my Main Phase I can tribute Wicked Tree and deal damage to my opponent equal to its current DEF."

"So you're going to let those weird counters grow until your tree has over 4000 DEF points and then activate its effect." Jaden realized.

"Correct once again." Hiyori replied. "And you will soon find that there is no way to prevent my strategy from succeeding. I set one card on the field and end my turn!"

Jaden drew his next card hoping for some way around Hiyori's defense. He knew if he didn't find one soon he would be finished. Jaden looked at the card he drew and smiled when he saw that it might be just what he needed.

"I summon Neo-Spacian Grand Mole!" Jaden announced.

Appearing on the field was a large brown mole with shoulder pads that looked to be made from a split drill. As soon as Jaden summoned the monster, another fruit grew on the Wicked Tree.

"As of now, Wicked Tree of the East has 3500 DEF, and Mystical Elf has 2600 DEF." Hiyori pointed out.

"That won't matter in a minute!" Jaden told her. "When Grand Mole attacks a monster, he can return both that monster and himself to the hand without applying damage. Plus Grand Mole is level three, so he's not effected by Gravity Bind. Grand Mole attack Wicked Tree with…"

"Activate Trap, Shadow Spell!" Hiyori interrupted. "This card prevents your mole from attacking and lowers its ATK by 700 points!"

Black chains suddenly shot up from the ground and wrapped around Grand Mole. A look of frustration appeared on Jaden's face.

"I studied your previous duels from both this tournament and before." Hiyori told Jaden. "As a result I have prepared my deck to combat your strongest cards. Grand Mole is one card that could've ruined my strategy. But as you can see I was prepared, and now it is no longer a threat. The most logical course for you now would be to surrender."

"There's no way I'm doing that!" Jaden declared.

"That is your decision, but you would only be prolonging your suffering." Hiyori said coldly. "You cannot attack, and each monster you summon will only bring you closer to defeat. Doing nothing would only prolong things even more, as I can just summon monsters until my Wicked Tree grows enough counters to inflict the proper amount of damage. You may be denying it now, but you shall soon see that victory is mine."

* * *

**Author's Note:** The inspiration for each of the four Orichalcos Ritual monsters came from evil creatures from Lord of the Rings. In the first half of Fellowship of the Ring, the hobbits encounter an evil willow tree, and that was thin inspiration behind Wicked Tree of the East. But there was another inspiration for it too. I got the idea for the Wicked Fruit counters from a couple of episodes of InuYasha where they face a demonic tree that grows creepy human faced fruit.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	15. Jaden the Supreme King

**Author's Note:** Last night I didn't get to sleep until a little after 3:00, so I've been tired all day. And yet I was able to get this chapter done today. Sometimes I surprise myself.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 14: Jaden the Supreme King

Jaden was in a tight spot thanks to Hiyori's strong defense. Not only had she managed to lock down all of Jaden's attacks with her Traps, the defensive power of her monsters seemed insurmountable. What was worse was that Hiyori's Wicked Tree of the East was a ticking time bomb that would go off once it had grown enough counters. Jaden knew that if he didn't do something to get rid of the Wicked Tree soon, he would lose and be unable to stop Tamao. Unfortunately there was nothing in Jaden's hand that could help him at the moment.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced.

As Hiyori drew her next card, Jaden found that he was afraid of what Hiyori's next card might be. If Hiyori's next draw were a monster, it would mean she could grow another counter on Wicked Tree of the East. Jaden was at least thankful that Hiyori had already used up the rest of her hand.

"…Well, it seems I have yet to draw a monster." Hiyori announced, causing Jaden to breath a sigh of relief. "However, what I have drawn will put an end to your mole once and for all. I activate the Spell card, Fissure, and use it to destroy Neo-Spacian Grand Mole!"

The ground beneath the chained Grand Mole collapsed. The intergalactic mole fell into the large hole that had formed, which had sealed up after claiming its victim.

"I end my turn!" Hiyori announced.

"First I activate Pot of Greed and draw two more cards!" Jaden announced.

Jaden smiled when he saw the two cards he had drawn. The first was Elemental Hero Stratos, which had an effect that could destroy Gravity Bind. The second card was Polymerization. He knew that fusing Wildheart and Bladedge wouldn't be enough to destroy Hiyori's defensive monsters, but combining either of them or Burstinatrix with Stratos would allow him to summon Elemental Hero Great Tornado. Great Tornado's summoning would cause the ATK and DEF of Hiyori's monsters to be cut in half, thus making it possible to destroy the Wicked Tree.

"First I summon Elemental Hero Stratos in Attack Mode!" Jaden announced. Appearing on the field was a warrior in sleek blue armor and white helmet with green visor. On his back was a pair of metal wings, each with a propeller. At the same time as Stratos appeared, another Wicked Fruit Counter grew on the Wicked Tree. "Now I activate the first effect of Stratos, which allows me to destroy a Spell or Trap card for each Hero monster I control. Right now the only Hero I have is Stratos, but I only need to destroy one card, and that's Gravity Bind!"

The propellers in Stratos's wings began to spin at an incredible speed, creating a pair of twisters that destroyed the large representation of Hiyori's Gravity Bind card.

"Now I activate Polymerization!" Jaden announced.

"Activate Trap, Non-Fusion Area!" Hiyori suddenly announced. "When this card is in play, neither player can summon Fusion monsters!"

Jaden was completely shocked. Once again Hiyori had managed to stop him right when he had found a strategy that could penetrate her defenses. Only this time it was far worse.

"Non-Fusion Area not only prevents you from summoning your regular Elemental Hero Fusions, but also prevents you from using The Eye of Timaeus and The Fang of Critias as well." Hiyori pointed out. "Though I was unable to find any information on the cards them selves, I was able to find out from your previous duels that your so-called Dragons are a unique form of Polymerization that uses only one card to create a Fusion monster. Therefore, Non-Fusion Area is the one card that can prevent the Dragons from being used."

"I… end my turn." Jaden announced with a look of frustration on his face.

"Giving into frustration will not change the situation." Hiyori coldly told him. "You should just calmly except that this duel has no logical conclusion."

"You expect me to just give up?" Jaden asked with a hint of anger in his voice.

"If you were a logical person like myself, yes." Hiyori answered bluntly. "But you are ruled by your emotions, just like all the flawed humans of this planet. So you'll most likely keep trying to find a way around my strategy, no matter how futile it is."

"You think people are flawed because they have feelings?" Jaden asked sounding surprised.

"Emotions often cloud a persons judgment and cause them to make mistakes." Hiyori explained. "Only when the human race has risen above them can they unlock they're true potential. That is a lesson I learned many years ago from my father, one of the most brilliant scientists of his time."

"I get it. So you just put a wall around yourself to try and keep yourself from feeling anything." Jaden realized. "Just like you hide behind a wall of monsters in your duels like you're doing now."

"If you're saying that I have learned to be detached, you are correct. But this discussion is pointless." Hiyori said as she drew her next card. "…Once again I have failed to draw another monster. However there is something I can still do this turn. I activate Hammer Shot and destroy Elemental Hero Stratos!"

A giant wooden mallet suddenly swung down from the sky and pounded Stratos into the ground before disappearing. Once again Jaden's field was empty.

"I end my turn." Hiyori announced.

Once again Jaden had breathed a sigh of relief when Hiyori didn't play another monster. If she had, the Wicked Tree's DEF would rose to 4100 after growing another counter. Then it would've been game over. Even so, it seemed to Jaden that he would have to make his next turn count or else it would probably all end on Hiyori's next turn. As Jaden reached to draw, the card on top of his deck began glowing with a faint white aura.

Upon touching the card, Jaden once again found himself transported to the same temple where he had met Timaeus and Critias. Just as before, Yubel was with him in solid form. The one thing that Jaden noticed was different about the place when he glanced outside was that the eye of The Great Leviathan had grown much larger than before.

"There isn't much time." A voice suddenly spoke. "If we do not do something soon, The Great Leviathan will be fully resurrected in a matter of days."

Jaden and Yubel turned to see another knight in red armor and wearing a black cape. Jaden noted that the knight bore a resemblance to the legendary duelist, Joey Wheeler.

"So I guess you're Timaeus and Critias's brother." Jaden assumed.

"That is correct Jaden Yuki." The knight replied. "And I have come to help you in your current battle."

"I'd love your help, but I'm not sure if you can." Jaden told him. "Hiyori has pretty much sealed my Fusions."

"I should still be able to help you." The knight maintained. "The power of my dragon form work differently than the dragon forms of my brothers. All hope is not yet lost."

"Well, we certainly don't have anything to lose by trying." Yubel commented. "But your power better be able to help, because if it can't Jaden is sunk."

"Do not worry Yubel." The knight said reassuringly. "Together we shall prevail!"

"I'm really grateful for your help." Jaden said as he held out his hand to the knight.

"I am called Hermos." The knight said as he shook Jaden's hand.

In another flash of white light, Jaden found himself back in the duel hold the card he had just draw. As before with The Eye of Timaeus and The Fang of Critias, Jaden found that he somehow knew how to use this new card. And it was at that point he had figured out a way to topple Hiyori's defenses.

"First I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart!" Jaden announced.

The wild jungle hero appeared on the field. At the same time another Wicked Fruit sprouted on the Wicked Tree of the East.

"As of now, my Wicked Tree's DEF is 4100, and my Mystical Elf's DEF is 3200." Hiyori announced. "It seems you have now sealed your fate. Next turn I will tribute Wicked Tree and bring your life points to zero."

"There won't be a turn after this one!" Jaden proclaimed. "Because now I activate the Spell card, Fake Hero! And with its effect I summon Elemental Hero Bladedge!"

Appearing on the field was a muscular warrior covered completely in gold armor. Large blades were attached to the hero's forearms. As soon as Bladedge appeared another fruit sprouted on the Wicked Tree.

"Again, your efforts are futile." Hiyori coldly maintained. "Your Bladedge may have the ability to inflict piercing damage its ATK is only 2600, far below the DEF of my monsters. I do not see the point to this display."

"You will in a second!" Jaden announced. "Because now I play The Claw of Hermos!"

Roaring onto the field was a large and brawny looking brownish-red dragon with a back full of spikes and a horn on the end of its snout.

"Again, your actions are pointless." Hiyori maintained, though this time there was a slight hint of irritation in her voice. "The power of your dragons cannot work while Non-Fusion Area is in play."

"The Claw of Hermos works differently than The Eye of Timaeus and The Fang of Critias!" Jaden explained. "When Hermos combines with a monster, he doesn't create a Fusion monster but an Equip Spell!"

"What?" Hiyori exclaimed, actually sounding surprised.

"You heard right, so now I combine Hermos and Bladedge to create Hero Edge Axe!" Jaden announced.

Hermos then began to merge together with Bladedge, resulting in an explosion of white light that washed out the field. When the light faded, a large golden axe that looked as if it had been fashioned from Bladedge's armor hovered on the field next to Wildheart.

"Now I equip Hero Edge Axe to Wildheart!" Jaden announced. Wildheart took hold of the axe in his right hand. "Wildheart, chop down Wicked Tree of the East with Hero Edge Chop!"

With that, Wildheart charged at the Wicked Tree and swung the axe into the base of its trunk. The tree was not destroyed, but Wildheart kept swinging away.

"What is the point of all this?" Hiyori asked. "The DEF of Wicked Tree is still far higher than Wildheart's! Are you trying to lose on purpose now?"

"If you were paying attention, you'd have figured out that I don't take damage when a monster equipped with Hero Edge Axe attacks a monster with higher DEF!" Jaden explained. "On the other hand, after a monster equipped with Hero Edge Axe battles a monster with DEF higher than its ATK, that monster gets destroyed and my opponent takes damage equal to the destroyed monster's DEF. And thanks to all those Wicked Fruit Counters, Wicked Tree's DEF was 4400, which is more than enough to wipe you out!"

As Jaden talked, Wildheart continued to hack into the Wicked Tree of the East. Soon enough the hero had managed to hack half way through and the tree began to topple over towards Hiyori. Hiyori raised her arms in a pointless attempt to protect herself. The tree fell on Hiyori and her life points dropped to zero. With the duel over the monsters vanished, and the number on Hiyori's point counter dropped to zero. At the same time the number on Jaden's point counter rose to one hundred and twenty and flashed green. The sound of the P.A. horn then rang over the island.

"Attention tournament participants!" Amane's voice called over the intercom. "We now have our seventh finalist, and I'm sure no one will be surprised when you hear his name. Our seventh finalist is pro duelist Jaden Yuki! As of now, only one spot is left in the finals. So may the best duelist win!"

After the announcement Hiyori slowly got back to her feet.

"I don't understand." Hiyori said with a shocked expression on her face. "I was sure that I had anticipated everything… So how could I have lost?"

"Obviously you didn't quite predict everything." A voice suddenly cut in. Both Jaden and Hiyori turned to see Tamao standing near by.

"L-Lady Tamao! What are you doing here?" a startled Hiyori asked.

"I came here to see if you truly had come up with a way to defeat Jaden Yuki." Tamao coldly explained as she approached. "But I can see that you've failed miserably. Return to the dorms, you're done for the day."

"…Yes Lady Tamao." Hiyori said with a bow before quickly walking away. Jaden could swear that she was on the verge of tears.

With Hiyori gone, Tamao approached Jaden with an innocent smile.

"Well Jaden, I congratulate you on making it into the finals." Tamao told him. "You dueled very well against Hiyori."

"Cut the games Tamao." Jaden demanded. "I know you're trying to bring back The Great Leviathan."

"Well, it seems that you really do know more than my dear witches and I first thought." Tamao said as her false smile quickly faded. "I assume you learned of the Leviathan from the three dragons, or rather three knights."

"How I learned about it doesn't matter." Jaden told her. "What I do want to know is why you're trying to bring back the Leviathan and destroy the world."

"That does not concern you." Tamao said calmly but with a hint of anger in her voice.

"Fine…" Jaden said as he saw that he wasn't going to get anything out of Tamao. "But one way or another I'll stop you."

"You think you can stop me with just the power of the three knights?" Tamao asked.

"Not just with the power of the Legendary Knights, but with my own power!" Jaden declared as his eyes suddenly flashed bright gold before turning to the colors of Yubel's eyes. "The power of Yubel and the Supreme King!"

"Is that supposed to intimidate me?" Tamao said in an unimpressed tone as her eyes flashed to an eerie Orichalcos green. "I wield a power that is over 10,000 years old. You have no hope of defeating me. But I guess we'll just have to settle this in the finals."

With that, Tamao turned on a heel and walked away. Jaden sighed and his eyes returned to their usual brown.

"So did we just declare war?" Yubel asked as she appeared next to Jaden.

"If we haven't already we have now." Jaden replied as he looked off in the direction Tamao went. "And before this tournament ends we will take Tamao down!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** I admit that using an axe to take down an evil tree was pretty obvious, but I liked the idea so much I ran with it. There's only one duel left before the finals, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	16. Make Her Suffer

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 15: Make Her Suffer

The tenth day of the Astraea Star Cup Tournament had finally arrived. With seven of the finalists decided, the three schools were abuzz with gossip and theories about who might be the eighth. Meanwhile, those who were still in the tournament were fighting tooth and nail to get that final coveted spot. That morning Shion was walking through the halls of Spica on her way to a meeting of the three student councils. On her way there she overheard two of the students talking.

"So who do you think is going to be the eighth finalist?" one of the students asked the other.

"Dunno, but I hope it's someone from Spica." The other student answered. "I was actually hoping that President Shion would make it in, but I heard she got wiped out on day one."

"That's cause she challenged Jaden Yuki." The first student pointed out.

"Seriously?" the second student exclaimed. "She challenged the guy who beat both the previous and current Etolie on the first day of the tournament? What the heck was she thinking?"

"No clue, but she's been a real basket case these days." Replied the first student.

Shion sighed as she overheard the conversation. The two were right; challenging Jaden on the first day of the tournament was a dumb move, one that was motivated by jealousy. And that lose wasn't very good for Spica's image.

"You know who might actually make it into the finals?" the first student asked the second. "Lilum's president, Chikaru Minamoto."

"Are you kidding?" the second student asked. "I didn't know she was that good."

"Well she is a student council president." The first student pointed out.

"I know, but Lilum?" the second student responded. "That school isn't really known for putting out strong duelists."

"They have produced a few." The first told the second. "Anyway, last I heard President Chikaru had gotten seventy points in the tournament. She could actually make it."

"Wow, I had no idea." Replied the second student. "Well, we should get to class."

With that, the two students walked off. As Shion continued on her way to the meeting, she thought about the idea of Chikaru being a finalist in the tournament. Of course she had no doubt that her beloved Chikaru could make it to the finals. After all, she was a strong duelist. What bothered Shion was the possibility of Chikaru facing Tamao or one of the members of the Four Witches in the final rounds. She had heard the rumors about them and did not like the idea of Chikaru putting herself in such danger.

* * *

The meeting had gone like all the others. Once again aggravated by Tamao's antics. It had come to a quick end though. After the meeting, Shion and Chikaru were the only ones left in the room. Shion sat at the table massaging her temples.

"I swear that girl is going to drive me insane!" Shion exclaimed. At that moment Chikaru walked up behind the chair and started giving Shion a backrub. "Oh, that feels great."

"You really should relax more." Chikaru told her.

"I'll relax when Tamao is dead." Shion joked.

"You shouldn't push yourself too hard." Chikaru said with a worried expression. "You're going to collapse at this rate."

"Yeah, you're right." Shion admitted. "After the tournament I'll let Kaname and Momomi handle things for a few days and take some time off."

"Sounds good to me." Chikaru agreed.

With that, Chikaru leaned down and planted a firm kiss on Shion's lips. The two were so lost in the kiss that they did not notice Jaden, Jessie, Striker, and Clive suddenly enter the room. Clive's jaw almost dropped off at the site before him.

"What the…?" Clive exclaimed, startling Shion and Chikaru.

"Sorry girls." Jaden said to the couple with an apologetic smile. "We were bored so I thought I'd show the guys around Spica. We'll leave you two alone."

With that, the four left the room. Though Jessie and Striker had to drag Clive out. After a few moments of walking the four stopped at the end of the hallway.

"Well that was awkward." Striker commented. "You know I've actually noticed that kind of thing a lot with the girls on this island."

"I have too." Jessie revealed.

"So have I." Striker informed them, still with a slightly shocked expression. "Fusion Master, you were on this island for a year. Tell us… is it like that with all the girls who go to these academies?"

"Well I couldn't say all the girls, but most of them it seems like." Jaden revealed.

"Of course!" Clive exclaimed. "It explains why my natural charms haven't appealed to any of the ladies here."

"What natural charms?" Striker teased.

"Wait a minute!" Clive said as a look of realization appeared on his face. "This is the island where they are from!"

"They?" Jaden asked with a raised eyebrow.

"A pair of girl duelists who've popped up recently." Clive explained. "One has long silver hair, and the other is a redhead. They've been traveling around Europe winning tournaments left and right. Alone they're powerful, but together they're unbeatable."

"Wow, they sound like a tough pair." Striker said sounding impressed.

"The silver haired girl is said to be an Elemental Hero user and has the Ultra Rare Elemental Hero Terra Firma." Clive revealed. "The rumors also say that she beat Seto Kaiba himself."

"Okay that I find a little hard to believe." Striker commented.

"Believe what you want Striker. I'm just telling you what I heard." Clive told him. "And I also heard that these two girls came from some fancy duel academy, and that they're a couple. And after what the Fusion Master just told us, I'm positive that those two girls are from this island."

"Well J., you were on this island last year. Those two girls sound familiar?" Jessie asked Jaden.

"Actually, it sounds like Clive is talking about Shizuma and Nagisa." Jaden revealed. "They're a couple of friends of mine, but I didn't know they had gotten such a reputation."

"How'd you meet 'em?" Jessie asked.

"It's a long story and I may tell you about it later." Jaden answered. "For now why don't I finish showing you guys around?"

"Sounds good to me." Striker agreed. "Just as long as we don't walk in on Shion and Chikaru again."

With that, the four walked off. Not too far away, Tamao had overheard much of their conversation. Two of the things that the boys were talking about really burned her up. The first was hearing about Shizuma and Nagisa. It angered her to hear that they were doing so well, but Tamao knew that there wasn't anything she could do about that at the moment. The second thing that enraged Tamao was hearing about Shion and Chikaru. Their relationship was just another unfairness in the world that needed to be eliminated.

* * *

A little later Tamao had gone to the Miator Student Council room to look at the fragment of The Great Leviathan. As she did so, she thought about what she should do about Shion and Chikaru. Tamao couldn't duel Chikaru and capture her soul with The Seal of Orichalcos, as she was a finalist in the tournament. But there was something else she could do. As Tamao continued to look at the fragment, Mika entered the room.

"You wanted to see me Lady Tamao?" Mika asked.

"Yes, I have a job that I need you to do for me." Tamao explained as she turned to face Mika. "But before I tell you what it is, I must ask how close you are to reaching the finals."

"I've got fifty points, so I'm half way there." Mika told her.

"Well then, I have the perfect way for you to assure your place in the finals." Tamao said as she walked towards Mika. "I want you to defeat Chikaru Minamoto."

"The president of Lilum?" Mika asked with a raised eyebrow. "With all do respect Lady Tamao, I don't see how beating her will get me into the finals."

"She has seventy points." Tamao revealed.

"Seriously?" Mika said with a very surprised expression. "Wow, I didn't know someone from Lilum could be that good. Still, beating her should be a piece of cake."

"Do not underestimate the power of a student council president." Tamao warned. "Still, this should be a relatively easy task for you. I only require you to do one thing though Mika. During the duel, I want you to make her suffer."

"No problem Lady Tamao." Mika replied. "But if you don't mind me asking, what do you have against President Chikaru?"

"My reasons are my own business." Tamao answered coldly. "Now get to it."

"Right away." Mika replied with a salute, and with that she left the room.

* * *

A little later, Mika headed towards her room at the dorms to grab a card that she thought would help her bring down Chikaru a little quicker. As she approached the door, Mika could hear the sound of crying coming from inside the room. Of course Mika knew that it could only be Hiyori, but it seemed so unlike Hiyori to be crying. Mika knew Hiyori to keep her emotions under lock and key, although ever since her defeat at the hands of Jaden, Mika noticed that Hiyori had been looking depressed. Mika opened the door a crack and peeked in to find that Hiyori was indeed laying facedown on her bed crying.

"Hey, Hiyori?" Mika called as she entered the room, startling Hiyori.

"Oh, Mika!" Hiyori said as she sat up and put her glasses back on. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to get a card I left in here." Mika explained as she went over to the dresser and pulled a card from one of the drawers. "Were you just crying?"

"Of course not!" Hiyori fiercely denied. "Why on earth would I be crying?"

Mika knew that Hiyori was lying, but she knew that pressing her about it would do no good. Plus she didn't see why she should care. Still, Mika could help but feel very troubled by all this, and she found that she wanted to do something to help Hiyori.

"Hey uh, Lady Tamao wants me to crush Chikaru Minamoto." Mika told Hiyori.

"How come?" Hiyori asked.

"She would tell me." Mika answered. "All I know is she wants me to make Lilum's president suffer."

"I see." Hiyori replied. "I suppose if Tomoyo wasn't in the finals, Lady Tamao would've sent her to do this task."

"Actually from what I could tell from her mood, Lady Tamao probably would've sent Jane to do it." Mika said with a shudder. "Either that or she would've done the job herself. But I'm the only one available to do it. So you wanna watch?"

"Why would I be interested in watching you duel?" Hiyori asked.

"I dunno, maybe just to get some fresh air?" Mika replied.

"I suppose it might do some good to go outside." Hiyori relented. "Okay, I'll come watch your duel. It might actually be interesting."

* * *

A little later, Chikaru was out for a walk. As much as she preferred to spend the rest of the afternoon with Shion, or perhaps pick a few flowers, she needed to find another opponent if she wanted to get into the finals. Plus Shion had more work to do for the student council. It wasn't long before Mika and Hiyori appeared before Chikaru. Chikaru could tell from the look on Mika's face that she wanted something.

"You're pretty easy to find President Chikaru." Mika told her.

"Mind telling me what you want?" Chikaru asked.

"I'd think that'd be pretty obvious." Mika replied. "I'm half way into the finals, and the word is you've got seventy points. If I beat you, I'm in. But then the same could be said for you if you beat me. So how 'bout it, think you can take me?"

Chikaru thought for a moment about what to do. She knew that the Four Witches were dangerous, but the chance for a fifty-point victory was hard to pass up.

"Okay… I'll take you on!" Chikaru finally agreed.

With that, the two activated their duel disks. It was at that moment that Jaden, Jessie, Striker, and Clive showed up while continuing Jaden's little tour of the island. The four of them were surprised by what they were seeing.

"Ah, Jaden Yuki. I must admit that this is a surprise." Hiyori said as she approached the four. "You're right on time to see your friend Chikaru Minamoto duel Mika, a duel that she will most likely lose."

"Why are you going after Chikaru?" Jaden demanded.

"Hey, it's nothing personal Yuki." Mika told him. "I'm just doing this to get into the finals, and because Lady Tamao has something against your friend. Besides it's not like Chikaru is being forced into this."

"Jaden, you and the others just stay out of this, okay?" Chikaru requested. "I can handle Mika."

"…Okay, but be careful." Jaden replied after a moment.

Once the life points of the two duelists were set to 4000, the duel began. Chikaru had the first move.

"For my first move I summon Chamberlain of the Six Samurai in Defense Mode!" Chikaru announced. Appearing on the field in a sitting position was a man with long black hair tied in a ponytail and a scared face and cybernetic right eye. His arms and lower legs were mechanical, as if he had lost them in battle. "Now I set two cards on the field and end my turn!"

"A pretty safe opening move, but it won't help." Mika commented as she drew her first card. "First I summon Sonic Bird!"

Appearing on Mika's side of the field was a large eagle wearing goggles and a jetpack.

"When Sonic Bird is summoned, I can add a Ritual Spell card to my hand. And the card I choose to add is Orichalcos Ritual!" Mika announced. "And now I activate Orichalcos Ritual and tribute my Sonic Bird and your Chamberlain of the Six Samurai to summon Dark Orc of the West!"

The circle of the Orichalcos Ritual appeared on the field. Lightning shot up from the circle and slowly and painfully deconstructed both monsters. When there was nothing left of the tributes, a pillar of black flames shot up into the air. Once the flames finally faded, Dark Orc of the West was standing on the field holding its club. Meanwhile, Mika's eyes began glowing red.

"By the time I'm through with you, you're gonna wish you never even entered this tournament!" Mika declared with a mad grin.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Not much to say about this chapter really. The actual duel didn't take me long to write, but with all the stuff that happened in the beginning of this chapter I had to split it up.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	17. The Power of Love

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the cheesy title. I thought about using "The Power of Unity" as the title for this chapter, but in my mind this title just sounded better for some reason. Plus I think that title has been used a few times before.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 16: The Power of Love

The two between Mika and Chikaru had only just begun, and already Chikaru was in a tight spot. It was only the second turn of the duel, and Mika had summoned Dark Orc of the West. Meanwhile, the only thing Chikaru had on her side of the field was pair of facedown cards. The duel looked like it had become very one-sided. And with the last spot in the finals at stake, it was all or nothing.

"Unfortunately I can't attack the turn I use Orichalcos Ritual." Mika announced. "So I'll just set one card on the field and end my turn!"

"That thing looks nasty." Clive commented on the sidelines. "Good thing our lovely Chikaru has a couple of facedown cards that could stop that thing."

"Don't be so sure." Jaden said with a grim expression. "Spell and Trap cards can't be activated until after the damage step when Dark Orc attacks."

"Are you serious?" Clive exclaimed. "That means she's defenseless!"

"Maybe not." Striker commented. "The Six Samurai are supposed to be about as strong as the Elemental Heroes. Alone they aren't much, but together they just might be strong enough to take down even the Dark Orc. Chikaru might be able to turn things around on the next turn."

Back in the duel, Chikaru had just drawn her next card. The Dark Orc of course intimidated her, but after seeing her next card she felt she had a way to beat it.

"First I summon The Six Samurai-Zanji!" Chikaru announced. The orange and black armored samurai appeared on the field wielding his naginata. "Next I activate Double Summon! This allows me to normal summon a monster one more time this turn, so now I summon The Six Samurai-Irou!"

The visor-wearing samurai in black and purple armor appeared on the field next to Zanji.

"And now I attack Dark Orc with Zanji!" Chikaru announced. "Naginata of Light!"

"Has Chikaru gone nuts?" Clive exclaimed sounding shocked. "Zanji only has 1800 ATK, there's no way he can survive against the Dark Orc!"

"True, but with Irou on the field Zanji can destroy any face up monster he attacks." Jaden pointed out.

Zanji began charging at the Dark Orc with his weapon raised, but a confident smirk appeared on Mika's face.

"Do you think I'm an idiot? I activate my Trap, Magic Arm Shield!" Mika suddenly announced. "This lets me use your buddy Irou as a shield for Dark Orc!"

A large brown shield suddenly appeared on the Dark Orc's left arm. The creature raised the shield, and the middle suddenly opened up to release a mechanical arm that grabbed Irou and pulled him in. Before Zanji could react he slashed Irou across the chest with his weapon. Irou shattered into triangles of golden light as a result. Meanwhile Mika's life points dropped from 4000 to 3900.

"I knew you might try using Zanji's effect to destroy Dark Orc." Mika boasted. "That's why I stuck Magic Arm Shield into my deck before coming here. I guess it wouldn't have been a bad move if you had actually pulled it off, but when you get right down to it The Six Samurai are a joke! Sure they have a few decent effects, but they can't use them unless one of their friends is on the field with them. They depend too much on their friends, and those who depend on others are weak! And there's no way you can beat me with a deck of weaklings!"

"I… end my turn!" Chikaru announced reluctantly. Mika drew her next card.

"First I summon Gemini Elf!" Mika announced.

Appearing on the field was a pair of female elves, one slightly taller than the other. The taller elf had long red hair and wore a simple purple dress with a short skirt. The other elf had blond hair and wore a light blue dress, also with a short skirt. As quickly as they appeared on the field however, the elves started to change. Their skin turned dark-grey and their hair white. They became far more muscular and grew yellow fangs that protruded from their mouths. Their eyes also began to glow bright red. Chikaru was startled by their transformation.

"While Dark Orc is on the field, all my monsters become Fiends, in this case orcs." Mika explained. "And now I activate Dark Orc's effect and sacrifice Gemini Elf to increase his ATK from 2400 to 4300 until the end of my turn!"

The Dark Orc of the West set down his spiked club and grabbed both the transformed elves by the neck. He began draining purple energy from the two creatures until they became withered husks and turned to dust.

"Now Dark Orc, smash Zanji into the ground!" Mika commended. "Soul Breaker Club!"

The Dark Orc charged forward and knocked Zanji to the ground with a powerful swing of his club, shattering the samurai into triangles of gold light. At the same time, Chikaru's life points dropped to 1400.

"You might as well just give up." Mika said smugly. "I set one card on the field and end my turn!"

Chikaru was at a loose as to what to do. She only had one card in her hand, and though it was a powerful one she didn't think it would be enough to beat the Dark Orc. Of course there was the card she had yet to draw, but Chikaru didn't think it could possibly be anything that could help her win. Chikaru actually began to think about surrendering.

"What's going on here?" a familiar voice suddenly asked. Chikaru turned and saw that Shion was suddenly standing near Jaden and the others. "Are you alright Chikaru?"

"Well, well, now the president of Spica has come to watch." Mika observed with an amused expression. "You're just in time to see your friend lose big."

"You're wrong, Chikaru will win!" Shion declared confidently.

"You seriously think that?" Mika laughed. "C'mon, your friend Chikaru only has one card in her hand and only a pair of useless facedown cards on the field. In short she has nothing that can stand against my Dark Orc of the West! She might as well just put her hand on top of her deck and surrender."

"None of that matters." Shion told Mika. "I've seen Chikaru in many other duels before this, and no matter how bad things looked for her, she always found a way to win. And I know she'll find a way to win this duel too!"

Shion's words touched Chikaru and gave her new courage. With her belief in herself renewed she drew her next card. A smile appeared on her face when she saw what it was.

"First I activate my Trap, Double-Edged Sword Technique!" Chikaru announced. "This lets me summon Zanji and Irou back to the field!"

On cue the two Samurai reappeared on Chikaru's side of the battlefield.

"Wow, that's a bold move." Striker commented. "It looks like it's all going to end on this turn."

"What do you mean?" Clive asked.

"The monsters summoned by Double-Edged Sword Technique are destroyed at the end of the turn and their opponent takes damage equal to their ATK." Striker explained. "If Chikaru can't pull off whatever she's planning to do this turn, she'll lose automatically."

"Wow, now that's a gamble." Clive said sounding very impressed.

"Now, because I have two Six Samurai monsters on my field, I can summon Great Shogun Shien!" Chikaru announced.

Appearing on the field was a warrior in bright red samurai armor holding a katana in his right hand. A gold flame adorned the front of his helmet, and another flame symbol was painted on his chest plate.

"Wow, the boss of the Six Samurai himself." Jessie commented in an impressed tone. "It's 100 ATK points stronger than the Dark Orc, but I wonder if it'll be enough to beat it."

"I think we're about to find out." Jaden told him.

"I equip Shien with United We Stand!" Chikaru announced. Shien began glowing with a fiant blue aura. "This card increases Shien's ATK by 800 points for each monster I have on the field! Right now I have three monsters, which means Shien's ATK rises from 2500 to 4900!"

"Now Shien is more than twice as strong as the Dark Orc!" Clive commented back on the sidelines.

"Shien, attack Dark Orc of the West!" Chikaru commanded. "Shien Slash!"

Shien raised his sword and began charging at the Dark Orc. Suddenly another confident smirk appeared on Mika's face.

"Nice try, but I activate my Trap, Hate Buster!" Mika announced. "Now both Shien and Dark Orc will be destroyed and you'll take damage equal to Shien's original ATK!"

"I don't think so!" Chikaru declared. "I activate my own Trap, Seven Tools of the Bandit! I pay 1000 life points and negate the effect of Hate Buster!"

Chikaru's life points dropped to 400 and the large representation of Mika's Trap card shattered apart. Meanwhile, Shien continued his charge. The blade of his sword suddenly lit up with purple flames. With one swing, Shien chopped off the Dark Orc's head. The remains of the orc shattered into triangles of gold light. At the same time, Mika's life points dropped to 1500.

"Irou, attack Mika directly!" Chikaru commanded. "Sword of Shadows!"

The blind swordsman charged forward, unsheathing his sword as he did so. Irou slashed Mika across the chest, causing her life points to drop to zero. With the duel over the monsters that were on the field vanished, and the number on Mika's point counter also dropped to zero. At the same time the number on Chikaru's point counter rose to one hundred and twenty. A shocked expression was on Mika's face. Suddenly the horn of the P.A. system sounded though out the island.

"Attention all tournament participants, the elimination round is now officially over!" Amane's voice announced over the intercom. "The last finalist was decided moments ago. So as of now, the eight finalists are Jason 'Striker' Morgan, Jane Hawthorn, Jessie Anderson, Clive Winston, Tomoyo Mikage, Tamao Suzumi, Jaden Yuki, and Chikaru Minamoto. We thank everyone for participating. The final matches of the tournament will begin tomorrow in the Miator academy stadium at 10:00 AM, so get there early if you want good seats."

With the announcement over, Shion walked over to Chikaru and put a hand on her shoulder, snapping her out of her expression of disbelief. Chikaru turned around to face her.

"Congratulations." Shion said to her.

"Thank you." Chikaru said as she wrapped her arms around Shion. "I couldn't have won that duel without you."

"How could I have lost?" Mika suddenly blurted out. "How could I lose to some wimp?"

"You still don't get it, do you?" Jaden cut in. "Chikaru was able to win because Shion believed in her. That belief gave her the strength to take you down. You keep saying that relationships make a duelist weak, but in reality Mika, you're the one who's weak!"

"What… did you say?" Mika responded with an expression of disbelief.

"The bonds that people have with friends, family, and loved ones can give people the strength to fight on even when things look their darkest." Jaden explained. "Chikaru had Shion and all of us believing her, and that's what kept her going. But you don't have anyone Mika. All you do is rely on your own strength and step on others to get what you want. In the end though, no matter how strong you try to make yourself you'll never find true strength if you're alone."

"Enough of this!" Hiyori cut in. "All you're saying is nonsense. Your friend only won because of mere chance."

"Shut up Hiyori!" Mika shouted before storming off.

"But… Mika, wait!" Hiyori called as she ran after her.

"You think you got through to her J.?" Jessie asked Jaden as he walked up next to him.

"Not sure." Jaden replied. "I hope so though."

"It all depends on how bright Mika is." Yubel said as she suddenly appeared next to Jaden. "If she's too dumb she'll never learn, but there might be some hope. Anyway, you've got more important things to worry about right now."

"You're right." Jaden said to Yubel. "The finals begin tomorrow, which means we'll probably be facing Tamao soon. So we better be ready."

* * *

**Author's Note:** That concludes the first arc of this story. It's been a long road getting here, but we've finally gotten to the halfway point. In the next chapter we begin moving into the finals.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	18. On the Eve of Battle

**Author's Note:** This ended up being a pretty short chapter. Very often in Yu-Gi-Oh! we have that part just before the big tournament duels where the characters reflect on what they're fighting for and stuff like that. This chapter is such a part. Plus I felt like I needed a break from writing the duels.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 17: On the Eve of Battle

The tenth day of the tournament had come to an end. Everyone had since gone to bed, though it was a restless night. Those who had made it into the finals found it hard to get to sleep because of the anticipation of the duels to come. Meanwhile, those who were not so lucky stayed up reflecting on why they lost. Such was the case with both Mika and Hiyori. That night they were lying in their beds wide-awake.

"Hey Hiyori," Mika said suddenly breaking the silence, "do you think that Jaden Yuki was right about me being weak?"

"…Of course not." Hiyori said as she turned on her side to face the wall. "Your record of victories proves that you're a strong duelist. You should not let one lose make you think otherwise."

"I don't know… I keep thinking back to that duel." Mika replied. "Minamoto was just about to give up, I could see it in her eyes. But then Tomori showed up and she suddenly got back her fighting spirit and beat me."

"She just happened to draw the right card at the right time." Hiyori told her, though Mika felt that she sounded a little unsure of what she was saying.

"I think it's more than that." Mika disagreed. "She may have had a lucky draw, but her friends being there seemed to give her a strength that I've never seen before. Or maybe I've just never noticed it… Maybe the both of us have been wrong about emotions making people weak."

"…Don't be ridiculous." Hiyori denied. "You should get some sleep. We may not be in the finals, but Lady Tamao still may need our help."

"…Yeah, okay." Mika replied, and with that she turned to face the wall and closed her eyes.

* * *

In another room at the Strawberry Dorms, Jane and Tomoyo were also having a hard time getting to sleep. Though it was not because they were anxious about the finals. They had stayed up most of the night making sure their decks were ready. The two had only recently finished and gotten into bed. Both of them were confident that they were prepared.

"Just so you know Tomoyo, there is a chance we may have to face each other in the finals." Jane suddenly pointed out. "Know that if that happens I will show you no mercy."

"I'm aware of that, and I will do my best to defeat you too if that happens." Tomoyo told her. "And… I want you to know that whatever dangers that may happen in this tournament I will protect you, even if it means my life."

"Hmph, whatever." Jane replied coldly as she turned on her side to face the wall. Tomoyo sighed in response to this and attempted to go to sleep.

* * *

Back at the student council room of Miator Tamao was still wide-awake. She had a lot of things on her mind that night and decided to ponder them while checking on The Great Leviathan. Tamao was pleased that her plans seemed to be going well, even though both Mika and Hiyori were both knocked out of the tournament. But there was one thing on the back of her mind that was nagging at her, and that was Jaden Yuki. He seemed to be the only person who could derail Tamao's plans.

Tamao kept thinking about the last time that Jaden was on the island. She knew that it wasn't Jaden's fault that Nagisa had left her for Shizuma. That was just the way things were, but it seemed to Tamao that Jaden helped them along a bit. And when Tamao thought back on that year she remembered how Jaden seemed to be against her and Nagisa entering the Etoile Tournament. Then there was that story of how Jaden used a card awakened by Shizuma and Nagisa's love to destroy a demon that was plaguing the island.

The Tamao had thought about that story the more she wondered if it was actually true. The past couple of days she had been asking around Miator and had found that several students had actually witnessed that so-called duel. Tamao had realized at that point that the story was true and that she didn't want to believe it. Acknowledging that the story was true meant acknowledging that Shizuma and Nagisa's love was very real, and that was something that Tamao didn't want to accept. But Tamao could see that denying that fact was pointless, as she had realized long ago that she and Nagisa never had a chance.

However, none of that mattered anymore, not Shizuma and Nagisa, and not Jaden. Even though Jaden had the power of the three Legendary Knights and his own powers, nothing he had done so far had damaged her plans. The Great Leviathan was on its way to being fully resurrected. Once the tournament was over she would use the Leviathan to destroy the world of unfairness that existed and create a new and perfect world with the power of the Orichalcos. It was only a matter of time, and nothing could stop it.

* * *

At the same time, Jaden was still wide-awake in his room at the guesthouse. He kept tossing and turning trying to figure out why Tamao was trying to resurrect The Great Leviathan. He of course figured out that the Orichalcos was bringing out Tamao's dark side, but there still had to be a reason. But no matter how hard he thought about it, Jaden could not figure out why a girl like Tamao would want to destroy the world. Was she mad at the world for some reason? Jaden felt he needed to know the answer.

"You should get some rest." Yubel told him, as she appeared leaning against the nearby wall with her arms crossed. "After all, we have a big day tomorrow."

"I just can't figure out why Tamao is doing all of this." Jaden said as he sat up.

"You don't want to fight her, do you?" Yubel guessed.

"Tamao was one of the friends I made on this island when I was here last." Jaden told her. "It bothered me the way she obsessed over Nagisa, but she was still a nice girl… Yubel, can you figure out why Tamao would want to destroy the world?"

"I have a few theories." Yubel answered. "I think the main reason might be that she's still heartbroken over losing Nagisa."

"And for that she wants to destroy the world?" Jaden asked sounding surprised.

"Hey, people can do some destructive things when they're rejected. Especially when they're being corrupted by a dark force like the Orichalcos." Yubel pointed out. "Look at what I did after I was corrupted by The Light of Destruction."

"That's true." Jaden agreed. "But if you're right, what can we do to help her?"

"Who knows?" Yubel shrugged. "All we can do is try to defeat her and hope for the best."

"I guess you're right." Jaden relented. At that point, Pharaoh yawned at the foot of the bed, releasing the spirit of Lyman Banner.

"What's with all the racket?" Banner asked with a yawn. "It's hard for me to get a good night's sleep with the two of you talking."

"You know, you could get all the rest you want if crossed over to the other side." Yubel commented sarcastically.

"As if I'd miss out on all the adventures you and Jaden would get yourselves into." Banner retorted. "So what is it you two have been talking about?"

"We've been trying to figure out why Tamao has been trying to resurrect The Great Leviathan." Jaden told him. "Yubel thinks it's because she's heartbroken over losing Nagisa."

"That could be the reason." Banner said as he put his hand to his chin in thought. "But then again it could be more complicated than that."

"What do you mean?" Jaden asked.

"I've been thinking about this for awhile now, and it occurs to me that Tamao may have a greater plan in mind." Banner theorized. "Look at the four girls who have been helping Tamao, the Four Witches. They could be helping Tamao because they want the same thing she does."

"But then Tamao could be lying to them about what her real plan is." Yubel pointed out.

"Maybe, but then maybe not." Banner responded. "I've also been thinking about the reasons why Dartz, the original wielder of the Orichalcos, wanted to destroy the world. He wanted to create a new world pure of evil. What if Tamao is after a similar goal?"

"Well, we're not going to figure this out tonight." Yubel pointed out. "Let's all just go back to bed and try and figure this out during the tournament."

"You're right." Jaden agreed. "Goodnight guys."

With that, Yubel vanished. Meanwhile, Banner turned back into a ball of gold light, which Pharaoh jumped up and ate in one bite before lying back down. Jaden then tried to get to sleep so that he would be ready to fight the next day.

* * *

**Author's Note:** When I was writing this chapter I thought it would be longer. But I ended up cutting a few things I was originally planning to put in.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	19. The Finals Begin

**Author's Note:** Here it is, the first duel of the finals. This was actually a pretty hard duel to write, as you'll soon see.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 18: The Finals Begin

The day that the whole island had been waiting for had finally arrived, the first day of the Astraea Star Cup finals. Students and teachers from all three schools had packed the Miator stadium to see the event. And those who were unable to get in crowded around any monitor they could find to watch the action. Meanwhile, the finalists began to gather at the stadium. Jaden, Jessie, Striker, Clive, and Chikaru all met up beneath the stage.

"Why are we all here in the basement?" Clive asked as he surveyed the dim and rather dismal surroundings. "You'd think we'd get a more glamorous waiting room."

"This is where we as the eight finalists will make our entrance on stage." A voice suddenly said, getting the group's attention. They turned to see that it was Tamao. Jane and Tomoyo were with her. "We shall each rise up through the floor as we're announced."

Jaden, Jessie, and Chikaru all glared at the newly arrived finalists. The air was filled with a heavy tension.

"So, uh, I'm guessing we each stand on one of those eight platforms then?" Striker asked in an attempt to break the awkward silence.

"That's correct." Tamao replied with a smile that was far too innocent. "And I suggest we do so right now. They'll be announcing us any minute now."

With that, each member of the group got on one of the small platforms that would take them to the stage. Back up top the crowed was waiting anxiously. After a few moments Hikari and Amane walked up on stage. Both of them had a microphone in their hand.

"Welcome everyone to the Astraea Star Cup Tournament finals!" Amane announced into the microphone. "Now before we begin, let's meet our eight finalists."

"First up is visiting pro duelist Jason Morgan." Hikari announced.

With that, Striker rose up on the platform through a trap door that had opened up on stage. Striker waved at the crowed as they gave him a cheer.

"Next up is Miator student council member Jane Hawthorn." Amane announced.

Jane rose up through another trap door next to Striker. A cold expression was on her face. Most of the crowd was silent as she appeared.

"Our next finalist is visiting pro duelist Jessie Anderson." Hikari announced.

Much of the crowd cheered as Jessie rose up through the floor. Their loud cheers were mainly due to the fact that Jessie was known as one of the duelists who defeated the Etolie.

"Up next is visiting pro duelist Clive Winston." Amane announced.

There were a few cheers as Clive rose through the trap door, but not many. This was due to the fact that Clive had hit on a good number of the older students before he realized that they would never be interested in him.

"Next we have Miator student council member Tomoyo Mikage." Hikari announced.

Once again the crowd was more or less silent as Tomoyo appeared on stage.

"And next is Miator student council president Tamao Suzumi." Amane announced.

There were a few cheers as Tamao appeared on stage. Tamao gave a friendly smile and little wave to the audience.

"And now, please give a hand for our next finalist, visiting pro duelist Jaden Yuki!" Hikari announced.

The crowd erupted with applause as Jaden appeared on stage. Jaden was a little overwhelmed, but not surprised considering his reputation on the island. Jaden gave the audience a wave.

"Finaly, our last finalist is Lilum student council president Chikaru Minamoto." Amane announced.

The Lilum students in the audience all cheered loudly as Chikaru appeared on stage. A few of the student from Spica cheered loudly as well.

"Okay, now that our eight finalists are here, it's time to select the participants for the first duel." Amane announced. "The match ups for the first round of the finals will be decided by random chance, so please turn you attention to the monitor."

The large screen hanging from the ceiling of the stadium began flashing through pictures of the eight finalists on the left side. It began to slow down until it stopped on Jaden's picture.

"The first participant in round one is Jaden Yuki." Hikari announced, prompting the audience to cheer. "Now it's time to decide who he'll be facing."

The right side of the screen began flashing through pictures of the other seven finalists. Jaden found himself hoping to go up against Tamao so he could end the madness once and for all. At last the pictures began to slow down until stopping on Tomoyo's picture.

"Okay then, the first duel of the finals will be fought between Jaden Yuki and Tomoyo Mikage!" Amane announced. "Both duelists please take your positions on stage."

With that, Jaden and Tomoyo took opposite positions on stage. The rest of the group got off and waited by the stands. Jessie, Striker, Clive, and Chikaru went to one side of the stadium, while Tamao and Jane went to the other. Mika and Hiyori were down there waiting for them. Hikari and Amane waited on the far side of the stage.

"Jaden Yuki!" Tomoyo called from her side of the stage. "Know that the last time we faced each other I was being merciful. This time I shall so you no mercy."

"Game on!" Jaden responded.

"By the decision of the coin toss, Tomoyo Mikage has first turn." Amane announced. "Let the duel… begin!"

With their life points set to 4000, the duel began. Tomoyo had the first draw.

"First I play the Spell card, Gravekeeper's Servant!" Tomoyo announced. "Now each time you attack you must send a card from the top of your deck to the Graveyard. I set one monster on the field and end my turn!"

Jaden knew that Tomoyo's strategy was to destroy his deck rather than his life points. Unfortunately his opening hand didn't have Polymerization or any possible fusions. Nor did he have any cards that could rid the field of Gravekeeper's Servant. Jaden hoped that his first draw would be of more help. After drawing he found that he had gotten The Eye of Timaeus.

"Listen carefully Jaden Yuki." Timaeus said as he suddenly appeared next to Jaden in his knight form. "You must wait to use me when the time is right. Now is not the proper time."

"And just when is the right time?" Jaden asked.

"You will know when the right card is drawn." Timaeus answered. "For now you must have patience."

With that, Timaeus vanished. Jaden decided that for the moment he would follow Timaeus's advise and do what he could with what he had.

"First I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart!" Jaden announced. The jungle hero appeared on the field. "Now I send one card from the top of my deck to the Graveyard to attack! Wildheart, attack Tomoyo's set monster with Wild Slash!"

Wildheart charged forward with his sword raised. Just as the hero approached, Tomoyo's monster was revealed to be a giant brown caterpillar-like creature with a spike on the end of what was presumably its head. Wildheart slashed the creature in two with his sword.

"Since you flipped Needle Worm face up when you attacked it, you must now send the top five cards from the deck to the Graveyard." Tomoyo announced. Reluctantly, Jaden placed the five cards in the Graveyard slot of his duel disk.

"I'll lay down a couple of facedowns and end my turn!" Jaden announced. Tomoyo drew her next card.

"I set one monster on the field and end my turn!" Tomoyo announced. Jaden drew his next card.

"I send another card from my deck to the Graveyard to attack!" Jaden announced. "Wildheart, attack with Wild Slash!"

Wildheart's target was revealed to be another giant caterpillar-like creature identical to the first. The jungle hero's sword slashed the creature in half.

"Because you flipped up another Needle Worm, you must send five more cards from the top of your deck to the Graveyard." Tomoyo announced.

Jaden placed five more cards in his Graveyard slot. Back down on the sidelines, Jessie and the others were watching the duel with concern.

"So Tomoyo's strategy is deck destruction." Striker observed. "That's a pretty nasty way to take down an opponent."

"She probably has one of those weird Orichalcos Ritual monsters too." Clive guessed.

"She does, Jaden told me about it a few days ago." Jessie informed them. "It forces the opponent to send cards from the deck to the Graveyard each time it inflicts battle damage."

"Aw man, Jaden better find a way to beat Tomoyo fast, or he's out of the tournament." Striker said with a grave expression.

"He'll find a way." Chikaru said reassuringly.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced. Tomoyo drew her next card.

"I summon Gemini Elf in Attack Mode!" Tomoyo announced.

Appearing on the field was a pair of elf women. One had red hair and wore a short purple dress. The other was blond and wore a short blue dress with gloves.

"Gemini Elf, attack Wildheart!" Tomoyo commanded. "Rose Petal Storm!"

The two elves fired a blast of red rose petals at Wildheart that tore the wilderness hero to pieces. Jaden's life points fell to 3600.

"I activate my Trap, Hero Signal!" Jaden announced. "Since Wildheart was destroyed, I can summon another Elemental Hero from my deck in Attack Mode. So now I summon Elemental Hero Stratos!"

The sky hero with his mechanical wings appeared on the field where Wildheart once stood.

"Now I activate the effect of Stratos!" Jaden announced. "Since Stratos was summoned, I can destroy a Spell or Trap card for each Hero monster I control! So now I destroy Gravekeeper's Servant!"

The propellers in Stratos's wings spun and blasted the large representation of Tomoyo's Spell card with a pair of twisters, shattering the card into triangles of gold light.

"I set one card on the field and end my turn!" Tomoyo announced. Jaden drew his next card and smiled.

"First I lay down a facedown!" Jaden announced. "And then I play The Fang of Critias!"

Critias roared onto the field in his dragon form.

"I combine Critias with the facedown card I just played, Mirror Gate!" Jaden announced. "By doing this I summon Trick Mirror Dragon in Attack Mode!"

The large version of Jaden's Trap card on the field was absorbed into Critias. In a flash of white light Critias transformed into a dragon with scales like polished chrome. Its large wings were like polished glass.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced. Tomoyo drew her next card.

"Your dragon has zero ATK points, correct?" Tomoyo asked as she narrowed her eyes at the dragon.

"That's right." Jaden confirmed. "Plus he can't be destroyed in battle."

Back on the sidelines Jessie and the others were quite surprised by Jaden's last move.

"Why did Jaden play a monster with zero ATK points in Attack Mode?" a very confused Striker asked.

"Since that thing was created using one of those weird dragon cards the Fusion Master has, it probably has a killer effect." Clive guessed. "The problem is that Tomoyo has probably figured that out too. She'll probably avoid attacking it."

"Then again, Jaden's probably already thought of that." Jessie assumed.

Back in the duel, Tomoyo drew her next card. Again she narrowed her eyes at Trick Mirror Dragon.

"Gemini Elf, attack Stratos!" Tomoyo commanded. "Rose Petal Storm!"

The elf sisters fired off another blast of rose petals. In that moment, Jaden smirked.

"I activate my Trap, Staunch Defender!" Jaden announced. "This turn all of my opponent's monsters have to attack a monster of my choosing! And the monster I choose is Trick Mirror Dragon!"

The dragon then began glowing with a purple aura, causing the rose petals to be drawn towards it. The dragon then folded its mirrored wings around itself, showing Gemini Elf's reflection. The attack bounced back at the elf sisters, cutting them to shreds. Jaden's friends on the sidelines were very surprised and confused.

"What just happened?" a very shocked Striker asked.

"Trick Mirror Dragon gains the ATK of whatever monster attacks it." Jaden explained.

"I see, well played." Tomoyo commented. "I set one card on the field and end my turn!"

"Tomoyo, I don't know why you and Tamao want to destroy the world, but one way or another I will stop you!" Jaden proclaimed.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Sorry if the little introduction of the finalists was a little repetitive. I thought it would be interesting to see how the audience felt about each finalist. Anyway, the reason why the duel for this chapter was so hard to write was because I had to keep track of more stuff than I usually do when writing a duel. Specifically the number of cards in Jaden's deck, and his Graveyard. Why the cards in Jaden's Graveyard are important, you'll find out in the next chapter. Anyway, I knew this duel would have to be split into two chapters long before writing it.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	20. Clashing Wills

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 19: Clashing Wills

The finals of the Astraea Star Cup had kicked off with a duel between Jaden and Tomoyo. Already Tomoyo had destroyed most of Jaden's deck. However, Jaden managed to turn things around a little by combining The Fang of Critias with Mirror Gate to create Trick Mirror Dragon. Things still seemed pretty one-sided though, as Tomoyo had not lost a single life point. But Jaden did have the advantage at the moment, and as he drew his next card he hoped he could make a comeback.

"I activate the effect of Elemental Hero Necroshade in my Graveyard and summon Elemental Hero Neos from my hand!" Jaden announced. The white hero from space appeared on the field. "Neos, attack Tomoyo directly with Wrath of Neos!"

Neos lunged at Tomoyo with his fist raised. At that moment Tomoyo reacted.

"I activate my Trap, Mirror Force!" Tomoyo announced. "Now all of your monsters in Attack Mode are destroyed!"

Neos's fist came in contact with an invisible barrier. The impact caused a huge explosion that left Jaden's side of the battlefield completely bare.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced. Tomoyo drew her next card. "Hey Tomoyo, since we're here like this, I want to know why you're helping Tamao. Why do you two and the other members of the Four Witches want to destroy the world?"

Tomoyo paused for a moment and looked directly in Jaden's eyes.

"Since we are dueling I suppose I'll answer your question." Tomoyo finally replied. "And the answer is I do not care what about what Lady Tamao's goals for the world are. I only serve her because there is something I want to protect, and to do that I must eliminate you."

"I see…" Jaden responded. "Well I have to protect the world from Tamao, and I'll do that even if I have to take you down!"

"Then take me down if you think you can!" Tomoyo dared. "I summon Neo the Magic Swordsman in Attack Mode!"

The same blond knight in armor that Tomoyo had used in her last duel with Jaden appeared on the field.

"Neo, attack Jaden directly!" Tomoyo commanded. "Magic Sword Slash!"

The knight charged and slashed Jaden across the chest with his blade. The attack had reduced Jaden's life points to 1900.

"Now I activate my Trap, Robbin' Zombie!" Tomoyo announced. "Now each time one of my monsters inflicts battle damage, my opponent has to send a card from the top of their deck to the Graveyard!"

Once again Jaden placed another card from his deck in his Graveyard. Meanwhile down on the sidelines, Jessie and the others were becoming more worried.

"Jaden's deck is just getting murdered!" Striker exclaimed. "If he can't draw any more cards he'll lose automatically."

"I end my turn!" Tomoyo announced back in the duel.

As Jaden drew his next card he thought about using The Eye of Timaeus. But he remembered that Timaeus told him to wait until the right card was drawn, and it seemed that he had yet to do that. Jaden decided to try and but a little more time.

"I summon Elemental Hero Sparkman in Defense Mode!" Jaden announced. The blue and gold armored electrical hero appeared on the field in a crouched position. "That ends my turn!"

"I activate the Spell card, Orichalcos Ritual!" Tomoyo announced after drawing her next card. "I sacrifice my Neo the Magic Swordsman and your Elemental Hero Sparkman to summon Swift Goblin of the South!"

The magic circle of the Orichalcos Ritual appeared on the ground. Lightning began to shoot up from the circle and slowly deconstruct the two monsters, causing them to cry out in pain. When they were both consumed by the energy, a pillar of black flames erupted from the center and quickly vanished to reveal the Swift Goblin of the South.

"Since I cannot attack the same turn I use the Orichalcos Ritual I end my turn!" Tomoyo announced. Jaden drew his next card.

"I summon Elemental Hero Clayman in Defense Mode!" Jaden announced. The stone armored hero appeared on the field in a crouched position. "That ends my turn!"

"I equip Swift Goblin of the South with Big Bang Shot!" Tomoyo announced. "This card increases his ATK to 3400 and gives him the ability to inflict piercing damage. Swift Goblin, destroy Clayman with Shadow Blade!"

The goblin charged forward and sliced Clayman in half. The attack had dropped Jaden's life points to 500.

"Now due to the effect of Swift Goblin of the South you must send fourteen cards from your deck to the Graveyard." Tomoyo told him. "Plus one more card due to the effect of Robbin' Zombie."

Jaden sent the fifteen cards to his Graveyard slot. Back down on the sidelines his friends were becoming more worried.

"I've lost count. How many cards does Jaden have left in his deck?" Clive asked.

"About three I think." Chikaru answered. "There's something odd though. It feels like Jaden is holding back"

"Holding back what?" Jessie asked.

"I'm note sure." Chikaru replied. "But at the beginning of the duel it looked like he drew a really good card. You could see it on the expression on his face. And yet he hasn't once used it."

"Maybe it wasn't as good a card as he thought it was." Clive assumed.

"I don't think that's the case." Chikaru told him. "It's like Jaden has been waiting for something to happen."

"Well whatever he's waiting for better happen soon." Clive cut in. "Otherwise Jaden is toast."

Back in the duel Jaden was about to draw his next card. When he touched the card on top of his deck he heard a familiar sound. Jaden suddenly realized the card that he and Timaeus had been waiting for was near.

"I activate Pot of Greed and draw two more cards!" Jaden announced after playing the card he had just drawn.

"Is he crazy?" Striker exclaimed back down on the sidelines. "This means his deck will be out of cards!"

"It could be the Fusion Master is going to try and end it all on this turn." Clive assumed. "It's a bold gamble, and I know a little something about that."

"Now I summon the card that's been waiting at the bottom of my deck, Winged Kuriboh!" Jaden announced.

The brown fury puffball with white wings appeared on the field. Many of the audience members were murmuring amongst themselves. Meanwhile Tomoyo's normally emotionless expression showed irritation for the first time.

"I thought you were taking this duel seriously." Tomoyo said calmly.

"I am." Jaden told her. "Winged Kuriboh is one of my best cards, and it's the card that's going to win me this duel. Because now I play the card I've been saving this whole game, The Eye of Timaeus!"

With a huge gust of wind Timaeus appeared onto the field with a roar. Many of the audience members were quite shocked, as were Jaden's friends down on the sidelines.

"I don't get it, why wait to use Timaeus with Winged Kuriboh?" Striker asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You'd be surprised what J. can do with Winged Kuriboh." Jessie told him.

"I now combine Timaeus with Winged Kuriboh!" Jaden announced. "Say hello to Dragon Winged Kuriboh!"

Timaeus then turned into a green energy that went into Winged Kuriboh's right eye. The little puffball's wings grew to four times their size and wrapped around him. In a burst of white light, Winged Kuriboh had grown to twice his size and his once white-feathered wings had become green dragon wings. On his body he wore a large version of the helmet Timaeus normally wore in his knight form.

"Dragon Winged Kuriboh's ATK is only 300, but he gains 300 more ATK points for every card in my Graveyard!" Jaden explained. "Right now there are thirty nine cards in my Graveyard, which means his ATK is now 12000!"

Tomoyo's expression changed to one of utter shock, and she was not the only one. All were watching the duel was blown away by the unbelievably high amount of ATK points Jaden's monster had.

"Dragon Winged Kuriboh, attack Swift Goblin!" Jaden commanded. "Dragon Wingbeat Storm!"

With that, Dragon Winged Kuriboh began flapping his massive wings at incredible speed. A huge twister then began to form on the field. The tornado then headed at Swift Goblin and hurled him into the air. When the goblin hit the ceiling he shattered into triangles of gold light. The twister kept coming until it hit Tomoyo, and the force of it was so strong that it blew her off the stage. Once Tomoyo's life points hit zero Dragon Winged Kuriboh vanished. Everyone who had been watching the duel was completely shocked by Jaden's finishing move.

Jaden meanwhile rushed over to the other side of the stage to see if Tomoyo was hurt. He saw Tomoyo slowly get back to her feet and look back at him. Her expression was once again cold and emotionless, but eyes were filled with sadness. She then began limping back over to Tamao and the other members of the Four Witches.

"Uh, okay then. I guess we have our winner." Amane announced into her microphone after getting over the shock. "The first duel of the finals goes to Jaden Yuki!"

Everyone in the audience cheered loudly for Jaden. Meanwhile Jaden found that he felt bad about defeating Tomoyo.

"You did what you had to do." Yubel told Jaden as she appeared next to him.

"I know." Jaden replied. "It's just that Tomoyo seems so different from Tamao and the rest of the Four Witches. I wonder what she's trying to protect?"

"Maybe it's not a what but a who." Yubel theorized. "In any case you can't afford to worry about it now."

"You're right. I may have to face Tamao in the next round." Jaden agreed. "So I better be ready."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Before anyone points it out, I'm well aware that Jaden basically won that duel the same way Yusei won against that evil warden in that episode of 5D's. But I couldn't figure out a more original effect for Dragon Winged Kuriboh. Anyway, the finals are far from over, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	21. Jane the Cold Hearted

**Author's Note:** I've been looking forward to doing this chapter for quite awhile. In a way it's actually a warmup for another story I'm planing to do in the near future. Anyway, get ready for terror.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 20: Jane the Cold Hearted

The first duel of the Astraea Star Cup finals had ended with Jaden as the victor. After the duel, the finalists all adjourned to a waiting room for a fifteen-minute break, all except for Tomoyo that is. She had gone to Miator's infirmary to tend to the injury she sustained when losing her duel with Jaden. Tamao and Jane kept to themselves in the waiting room. Meanwhile Jaden and his friends had clustered together to talk.

"That was a heart pounding duel you had back there." Striker said to Jaden. "You really had us worried."

"It was pretty close." Jaden agreed. "I just wish that Tomoyo hadn't gotten hurt when I beat her."

"Serves her right after threatening Tsubomi the way she did!" a voice suddenly cut in, causing Jaden and the others to turn and see Yaya and Tsubomi standing near them.

"Hi girls." Jaden greeted. "What are you two doing here?"

"We just dropped by to say hi." Tsubomi explained. "It's not like this place is off limits to anyone not participating in the finals."

"Anyway, we came to wish you guys luck." Yaya added. "But I guess Jaden here doesn't really need it, considering he's beaten three of the Four Witches, one of them twice now."

"Three out of four, not bad Fusion Master." Clive commented. "Maybe you'll fight that fourth witch next and complete the set."

Jaden glanced over at Tamao and Jane. Tamao was sipping a cup of tea, while Jane sat there on the couch with a calm but very cold expression. It seemed to Jaden that her eyes were filled with rage.

"Anyone know anything about Jane?" Jaden asked the group. Jessie, Striker, and Clive all shrugged, but Yaya, Tsubomi, and Chikaru all suddenly shuddered.

"We have heard a few things, but they're mostly rumors." Chikaru answered. "But it's said that Jane is supposed to be the strongest member of the Four Witches."

"A friend of mine told me this story a couple days ago." Tsubomi cut in. "She said that not long after the tournament began she saw this pro duelist challenge Jane. The guy had black hair. My friend didn't stick around to watch the duel because she had some work to do. But later that day she was walking back to the dorms and saw that same pro duelist on the ground shivering, and his hair had turned completely white."

Before anyone could respond to Tsubomi's tale, Hikari walked into the room.

"Um, could you all please come back out now?" Hikari asked in her usual shy manner. "We're ready to start the next duel."

With that, the finalists got up and headed back out to the arena.

* * *

Once again the stadium was packed with spectators. Hikari and Amane had taken their place on stage to announce the next duel.

"It is now time to decide the player for the next duel." Amane announced into her microphone. "The winner will face Jaden Yuki in the next round of the finals. Now let's pick out our first competitor!"

With that, the left side of the large monitor above the stage began flipping through pictures of Jessie, Striker, Clive, Chikaru, Tamao and Jane until it finally stopped on Chikaru's picture.

"Our first duelist in the second duel of the finals is Lilum president, Chikaru Minamoto!" Hikari announced.

All of the Lilum students began cheering loudly at the announcement. Right away Jaden noticed Kizuna, Remon, and Kagome holding up a banner that said, "Go Chikaru". What surprised Jaden though was that he could not see Shion anywhere in the stands.

"Hey Chikaru, how come Shion isn't here?" Jaden asked. "I would've thought that she'd have made it here to cheer you on."

"She had business with the student council she couldn't get out." Chikaru answered. "But it's not like she knew I would be dueling today."

"I see…" Jaden replied. "Well good luck."

"Thanks." Chikaru replied. "Maybe we'll face each other in the next round."

"The Elemental Heroes against the Six Samurai. Sounds like it'll be a blast." Jaden said enthusiastically.

"And now let's see who Chikaru will be facing!" Amane announced. The right side of the screen flashed through the pictures of the remaining finalists. On the other side of the stadium floor Tamao was watching the screen with anticipation. At last the screen landed on Jane's picture. "The second participant of this duel is Miator student council president Jane Hawthorn! Both duelists please take the stage."

"Well, it seems I won't be getting a chance to trap dear Chikaru's soul." Tamao sighed to Jane. "Oh well, this result is just as good I suppose. Make her suffer."

"As you wish Lady Tamao." Jane replied before heading to the stage.

As Chikaru and Jane took the stage, Winged Kuriboh and Ruby Carbuncle appeared to Jaden and Jessie. Both Duel Monsters were growling in Jane's direction.

"Wonder what's got them so worked up?" Jessie asked Jaden.

"I'm afraid we're going to find out soon." Jaden said with a grave expression.

"By the decision of the coin toss, Jane has the first turn." Amane announced. "Let the duel… begin!"

With the life points of both duelists set at 4000, Jane drew the first card.

"I set one card on the field and end my turn." Jane announced coldly.

Chikaru felt confident as she drew her first card. Though she was a little worried about the card that Jane had set on the field. It was not a monster, but Chikaru knew that it might be some kind of devastating Trap. But Chikaru knew that it would not be good to hesitate.

"First I summon The Six Samurai-Nisashi in Attack Mode!" Chikaru announced. The muscular green armored samurai appeared on the field with his two swords in hand. "Next, since I have a Six Samurai monster on the field, I now Special Summon Grandmaster of the Six Samurai!"

The grizzled old veteran of the Six Samurai clan appeared on the field next to Nisashi.

"Nisashi, attack Jane directly!" Chikaru commanded. "Dual Sword Slash!"

With that, Nisashi charged at Jane and slashed her across the chest twice with his two swords. Jane's life points fell to 2600 as a result.

"I'm not finished yet though, since I have Grandmaster of the Six Samurai on the field, Nisashi can attack a second time." Chikaru pointed out. "Nisashi, hit Jane again with Dual Sword Slash!"

Once again Nisashi struck Jane again with his swords. The attack had caused Jane's life points to drop to 1200.

"Well, this duel's in the bag." Clive commented on the sidelines. "The Grandmaster has 2100 ATK. One hit from him and it's over. I guess this Jane girl isn't as tough as the stories say."

"This isn't over yet." Jaden told Clive.

"Grandmaster, finish this duel!" Chikaru demanded. "Swift Samurai Slash!"

"I activate my Trap, Shadow Spell!" Jane announced just as the Grandmaster began charging at her. "Now not only can your monster not attack, but he loses 700 ATK points!"

In an instant the old samurai was bound in black chains. All the Lilum students in the stands began booing Jane.

"Well that sucks." Striker commented. "Looks like Jane has been toying with Chikaru from the very beginning."

"I… end my turn." Chikaru announced with a look of disgust. Jane drew her next card.

"First I discard one card to summon The Tricky!" Jane announced. Appearing on the field was jester-like figure with a costume of yellow and black. A red question mark adorned the front of its mask, which completely covered its face. "And now I activate the Spell card, Orichalcos Ritual! Using this card I sacrifice Grandmaster of the Six Samurai and The Tricky to summon Wraith King of the North!"

The mystic symbol of the Orichalcos Ritual appeared on the battlefield. Bolts of energy shot up from it and consumed the two monsters until there was nothing left. The symbol then turned from green to red, and a pillar of red light shot up from it. The lights in the stadium then went dark, and then a thick fog rolled in from behind Jane. The fog cleared and the floor of the stadium was covered in a mist that seemed to bath everything in an unearthly glow. The temperature had become so cold that everyone could see his or her breath. Jaden's eyes meanwhile changed to their Yubel colors.

Suddenly Chikaru noticed the monster that Jane had summoned to the field. It stood about seven feet tall and wore a tattered cloak and hood. However its face could be seen, if one could call it a face that is. Its skin was as white s a sheet and gave off an eerie glow. If it had a nose and mouth, Chikaru could not see them. But she could see its eyes; they were bright red and glowed like demonic headlights. It seemed to Chikaru that they were looking into her very sould. Atop its head over the hood the creature wore a spiked crown that was made out of an otherworldly metal that had a silver quality to it. As a whole though, the thing looked like the grim specter of death itself.

"My Wraith King of the North has 3800 ATK points. But I cannot attack because I played the Orichalcos Ritual." Jane pointed out as her eyes began to glow red like her monster's eyes. "Therefore I end my turn. You can try and put up a defense of you like, but it will do you no good."

Chikaru's hand trembled as she drew her next card. Though it was not solely because of the cold. She was afraid of the Wraith King of the North.

"I-I switch Nisashi to Defense Mode!" Chikaru announced. Nisashi took a crouched position on the field. "Next I summon The Six Samurai-Irou in Defense Mode and end my turn!"

The visor-wearing swordsman in black appeared on the field in a crouched position next to Nisashi. Jane drew her next card.

"Wraith King of the North, destroy Nisashi!" Jane commanded. "Sword of Malice!"

The Wraith King threw back his cloak, revealing not only his slender form, but that he was wearing armor made from the same unearthly metal as his crown. His right skeletal hand grabbed the handle of his sword, which he then pulled out very slowly. The blade of the sword was pitch black. Then faster than anyone could see, the Wraith King had stabbed Nisashi through the chest. The samurai had a look of surprise frozen to his face. When the foul specter pulled out his blade, Nisashi slumped over and suddenly faded away.

"I end my turn." Jane coldly announced.

As soon as Jane's turned ended, Nisashi suddenly reappeared on Jane's side of the battlefield, only he looked very different. His skin had turned white and gave off an eerie glow. The features of his face had become indistinguishable, and his eyes glowed red like the Wraith King's.

"What's going on?" Chikaru demanded.

"When Wraith King of the North destroys a monster, that monster is summoned to my side of the field when my turn ends." Jane explained. "Not only that, but while my Wraith King is on the field, all of my monsters become Fiends, specifically wraiths."

Chikaru drew her next card hoping to find something that could help her. Unfortunately her draw had failed her. The only thing she could do was try and put up a good defense for time, but with the Wraith King's ability to turn her monsters against her, whatever defense Chikaru could put up would not help much.

"I summon Chamberlain of the Six Samurai in Defense Mode!" Chikaru announced. The old battle scared cybernetic warrior appeared on the field in a sitting position. "That ends my turn!"

* * *

Meanwhile back at the Spica student council room, Shion had just finished up her work. She decided to go to the stadium to see how the tournament was going. As Shion walked through the hallway, she overheard a couple of the students talking.

"Dang it, I can't believe the video feed to the stadium just cut out like that!" the first student exclaimed. "And right when the duel was getting good too!"

"I know. I wanted to see if Lilum's president could actually defeat Jane of the Four Witches." The second student replied.

That last remark made Shion freeze in her tracks. The mention of Chikaru dueling against Jane Hawthorn, who was said to be the strongest and most terrifying member of the Four Witches, worried Shion greatly. And the news of the stadium's video feed being lost gave Shion a terrible feeling that something was very wrong. Without hesitating, Shion started running to the stadium as fast as she could.

* * *

Back at the duel, Jane had just drawn her next card.

"I activate Monster Reborn and summon Grandmaster of the Six Samurai from the Graveyard!" Jane announced. The grizzled old samurai appeared on Jane's side of the field, though his appearance had become similar to Nisashi's and the Wraith King's. "Grandmaster attacks Chamberlain of the Six Samurai! Swift Samurai Slash!"

Faster than the eye could detect, the wraith Grandmaster charged over and decapitated the old scared warrior.

"Nisashi, attack Irou!" Jane commanded. "Dual Sword Slash!"

Nisashi charged over faster than the eye could see and sliced Irou apart with his swords. Chikaru's side of the field was wide open.

"Since I have another Six Samurai monster on my side of the field, Nisashi can attack again." Jane pointed out. "Nisashi, attack Chikaru directly with Duel Sword Slash!"

Nisashi slashed Chikaru across the chest twice with his swords, causing Chikaru to cry out. With the pain of the attack came an intense cold was unlike anything that Chikaru had felt before. Chikaru's life points dropped to 2600 from the assault.

"Finish this Wraith King." Jane commanded. "Sword of Malice!"

Just as Chikaru had recovered from Nisashi's attack, she noticed that the Wraith King was standing right in front of her and staring down at her menacingly. Chikaru found that she was filled with the kind of terror someone feels when it looks like they're about to die. At that moment Shion entered the stadium floor and was noticed by Jaden and the others. Shion's eyes widened when she saw the grim creature that was about to deliver the finishing blow to Chikaru. Meanwhile, Chikaru was completely frozen as the Wraith King slowly drew his sword.

With one slash of his sword, Chikaru fell backward like a limp doll. An expression of terror was frozen on her face. It looked like the Wraith King had actually killed her. As soon as Chikaru's life points hit zero, the monsters on the field vanished and the stadium returned to normal. Shion suddenly screamed out Chikaru's name and then collapsed. Jessie, Striker, and Clive rushed over to check on Shion, while Jaden went up to the stage to check on Chikaru. He found that Chikaru was still breathing, but was out cold and her skin was very pale.

* * *

The first day of the finals had come to an end. Jane was of course declared the winner, though Hikari and Amane did not like doing that. Both Shion and Chikaru were taken to Miator's infirmary. The doctors had found that Shion had collapsed due to stress, and should probably take a few days off from her duties as student council president. As for Chikaru, the doctors could not find anything physically wrong with her, but it seemed that she had suffered an extreme mental shock. Jaden and the others decided to stay with Chikaru and Shion for as long as they could.

Hours had passed and the sun was beginning to set outside. Jaden was sitting by Chikaru's bedside when Chikaru suddenly shot up and let out a blood-curdling scream. The rest of Jaden's gang rushed over after hearing it.

"Woah, Chikaru, it's okay!" Jaden said in an attempt to calm her down. "You're fine! You're in Miator's infirmary right now."

Chikaru finally calmed down after a moment. But she was shivering and was still very pale. Hikari found another blanket and draped it over Chikaru's back.

"W-Where's Shion?" Chikaru asked in a small voice.

"Well, she's here, but she's out cold." Jaden told her, glancing over at the bed that Shion was still in. "She came to the stadium right when Jane's monster attacked you. When she saw it attack you, it looked like you had actually been killed. She fainted after that."

"I see…" Chikaru replied as she looked over at where Shion was. "Jaden… I need you and the others to do something for me."

* * *

A few more hours had passed, and Shion finally woke up to find herself in a room that seemed unfamiliar to her. She was in the Strawberry Dorms. That much she could tell, but as she glanced around the room she saw that some of the furniture was unknown to her. Right away Shion noticed that something very soft and warm was in the bed with her and had cuddled up tightly next to her. She turned her head to the right and saw that it was Chikaru. Shion quietly called out Chikaru's name, causing the raven-haired girl to stir from her sound sleep.

"Oh, you're finally awake." Chikaru said drowsily. At that point Shion turned and put her arms around Chikaru.

"I-I thought you had died!" Shion said tearfully. "I mean I know sounds crazy, but it looked like that thing had actually killed you."

"I'm alright my love." Chikaru whispered reassuringly. "And I'm a lot better now that you're here with me."

"So uh, where are we?" Shion asked after finally gaining some composure.

"We're in my room." Chikaru answered. "Jaden and the others helped me bring you here."

"Oh, so that means… we're in your bed… together?" Shion suddenly realized as a heavy blush came to her face.

"That's right." Chikaru replied. "And… if you're up for it… I could really use you right now."

With that, Chikaru planted a firm kiss on Shion's lips. Shion relaxed into the kiss, and it became clear that the two were about to become a lot closer.

* * *

**Author's Note:** If I were to continue that final scene between Chikaru and Shion, I would have to change the rating of this story. But you can probably guess where it was going. Anyway, I've finally introduced the fourth and most powerful member of the Four Witches. We'll get to know a little more about her during her duel with Jaden.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	22. Rivals

**Author's Note:** There was a longer delay than expected in coming up with this chapter. But some stuff came up over the last few days. Oddly enough this chapter didn't take long to do, and I was actually expecting it to take me awhile. Anyway, this chapter could be considered the calm before the storm. It's the one light part of the story before things get real bad.

**Author's Note:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 21: Rivals

The twelfth day of the tournament had come. And the second half of the quarterfinal round was about to begin. That morning Chikaru and Shion were still relaxing in Chikaru's room. They had moved to the couch, but after breakfast Shion had dozed off and was using Chikaru's lap as a pillow. Both of them were wearing only a simple white bathrobe.

Chikaru glanced over at the clock and saw it was about time for the next duel of the tournament. As she continued to stroke Shion's blond locks, Chikaru grabbed the remote on the arm of the couch, turned on the TV, and flipped it to the channel that was showing coverage of the tournament. She could see that the stadium was once again packed. At last Hikari and Amane took the stage. The duel was about to begin.

* * *

Meanwhile on the stadium floor, Jaden, Jessie, Striker, and Clive had gathered together.

"So I wonder which of us is going to duel next?" Jessie asked.

"I hope it's me and Striker up next!" Clive said enthusiastically.

"I certainly wouldn't mind that." Striker agreed. "But the again I wouldn't mind dueling Jessie either."

"Same here." Jessie replied.

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind going up against Jessie myself, but I think all three of us are gunning for the same thing now." Clive pointed out. "And that's a duel with the Fusion Master."

"True, Jaden is the one to beat." Striker agreed. "And we all know that he'll make it to the final round. So the three of us should all try our hardest to get there too."

"I'm up for that." Clive agreed.

"So am I!" Jessie responded.

"I'll be looking forward to taking on any one of you." Jaden told them.

"Okay, welcome back everyone to the Astraea Star Cup Tournament!" Amane announced back on stage. "Things may have gotten a little intense yesterday, but the show must go on. So now it's time to select who's going to face off in the next duel."

With that, the large monitor above began cycling through pictures of Jessie, Striker, Clive and Tamao. After a few moments the screen settled on Jessie's picture.

"Our first duelist is Jessie Anderson!" Hikari announced. The crowed applauded the selection. "Now to see who our second duelist is."

The other half of the screen cycled through the pictures of the remaining finalists until settling on Striker's picture.

"Our second duelist is Jason 'Striker' Morgan!" Amane announced. "Both duelists please take the stage."

"Well, I guess we're up." Striker said to Jessie. "Just so you know, I won't be holding anything back."

"Same goes for me." Jessie replied.

"Hey Striker, I'll see you in the next round." Clive said as the two duelists took the stage.

"You bet!" Striker said as he gave Clive a thumbs-up.

"Man, I don't know who to root for." Jaden said to himself. "But either way this is going to be an awesome duel."

"It's not all fun and games though." Yubel darkly pointed out as she appeared next to Jaden. "Keep in mind that Tamao is still in this tournament, and she's a really big threat."

"Yeah, you're right." Jaden replied as he remembered the darkness behind the scenes of the tournament. "Plus I still have to face Jane of the Four Witches in the next round."

"I have no doubt that you'll beat Jane." Yubel told him. "It's Jessie and those other two that I'm worried about. At least two of them will probably have to face Tamao, and if she's as dangerous as we think she is, it won't be pretty if they lose."

Meanwhile, Jessie and Striker had gotten up on stage and activated their duel disks.

"By the decision of the coin toss, Jessie Anderson will go first." Amane announced. "Let the duel… begin!"

"I set one monster on the field and end my turn!" Jessie announced. Striker drew his first card. He scowled a bit as he looked at his hand.

"Man, I've got a pretty lame hand." Striker commented. "So first I think I'll activate Card Destruction! Now we have to discard our entire hands and draw new ones!"

Both duelists placed the cards in their hands in the Graveyard slot of their duel disks before drawing completely new hands from their decks.

"Okay, now we're talking. Now I summon Alpha the Magnet Warrior!" Striker announced. The same grey mechanical warrior that Striker used in his duel with Kaname appeared on the field. "Next I equip Alpha with the Spell card, Invigoration! This increases Alpha's ATK to 1800!"

Alpha began glowing with a greenish-yellow aura.

"Alpha, attack Jessie's monster with Magnet Slash!" Striker commanded.

The magnet warrior charged, and as he approached Jessie's monster, it revealed itself to be a large turtle with a green shell that had emerald crystals growing out of it. Alpha's sword hit the shell and did no damage. Striker's life points dropped to 3800.

"Good job powering up Alpha." Jessie commented. "It's just too bad that my Emerald Tortuous has 2000 DEF points."

"No big deal. I'll just set a cark and end my turn." Striker announced. Jessie drew his next card.

"I summon Crystal Beast Topaz Tiger!" Jessie announced. Appearing on the field was a white tiger with a bladed horn on his head and topaz gemstones on his body. "Topaz Tiger attacks Alpha with Topaz Incisor Shred!"

The white tiger jumped up in the air and was about to pounce on Alpha.

"Nice try, but I activate my Trap, Kunai With Chain!" Striker announced. "I equip this card to Alpha, increasing his ATK to 2300, and I also switch Topaz to Defense Mode!"

Alpha's sword and shield disappeared and were replaced with a chain with a blade on the end. Alpha swung the chain around and whipped it around Topaz Tiger's hind legs. With one good yank the tiger was pulled to the ground.

"Nice move." Jessie commented. "I guess I'll set a card on the field and end my turn."

"I activate the Spell card, Lightning Vortex!" Striker announced after drawing his card. "I discard one card and destroy all monsters on my opponent's field!"

Yellow lightning bolts spiraled down from the sky and caused a huge explosion on Jessie's side of the battlefield. When the smoke cleared the only things left aside from the large representation of Jessie's facedown card were two uncut gemstones, one emerald and one topaz.

"When my Crystal Beasts are destroyed I can keep them on the field in my Spell and Trap Card Zones." Jessie pointed out.

"True, but they can't protect you from attacks when they're like that." Striker reminded. "Alpha, attack Jessie directly with Magnet Slash!"

Alpha charged at Jessie and slashed him across the chest with his sword. The attack had reduced Jessie's life points to 1700.

"I'll set one card on the field and end my turn!" Striker announced. Jessie drew his next card.

"I summon Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus!" Jessie announced. A white Pegasus with a sapphire colored horn and sapphire gemstones in his wings appeared on the field. "Next I activate Sapphire Pegasus's effect and add Crystal Beast Ruby Carbuncle to my Spell and Trap Card Zone!"

The horn on Sapphire Pegasus's head glowed for a moment, and in an instant a large uncut ruby appeared on the field.

"Now I activate my Trap, Rainbow Gravity!" Jessie announced. "When I have all seven Crystal Beasts out, I can summon from my deck, Rainbow Dragon!"

A large rainbow shined down onto the battlefield, and from it emerged a large white dragon with four red eyes, a serpentine body, and a massive pair of white-feathered wings.

"Wait a minute, you only played four of your Crystal Beats! How can you…" Striker began to protest, but then a look of realization came to his face. "Wait, don't tell me."

"Yep, my other three Crystal Beasts were sent to the Graveyard when you played Card Destruction." Jessie told him. "Now Rainbow Dragon, blow Alpha the Magnet Warrior away with Rainbow Refraction!"

The dragon reared back his head and fired a beam of rainbow colored light from his jaws. The attack vaporized Alpha and reduced Striker's life points to 2100.

"Sapphire Pegasus, attack Striker directly!" Jessie commanded. "Sapphire Tornado!"

The white Pegasus flapped his wings, creating a large twister of blue wind. The twister hit Striker and reduced his life points to 300.

"Well, that ends my turn." Jessie announced. Striker drew his next card.

"Looks like Jessie may have this duel wrapped up." Jaden commented on the sidelines. "Next turn he can send the four Crystal Beasts he has on the field to the Graveyard and double Rainbow Dragon's ATK to 8000."

"Don't be too sure he'll have a next turn." Clive told him. "If I know Striker, he'll finish things pretty soon."

"Since I don't really have a hand to speak of, I play Card of Sanctity!" Striker announced. "Now both of us draw until we have six cards!"

"That's pretty generous of you." Jessie commented as he drew from the deck.

"Hey, this is more for me than it is for you." Striker told him. "Now I think it's time for a change of scenery. I play the Field Spell, Gaia Power!"

In an instant the battlefield changed to a forest with massive trees that covered the sky.

"Now I activate the Ritual Spell, Earth Chant!" Striker announced. "This card lets me summon any Earth Attribute Ritual monster from my hand. So now I sacrifice my level four Beta the Magnet Warrior and level four Obnoxious Celtic Guard from my hand to summon the level eight Black Luster Soldier!"

A large glowing symbol of yellow in the shape of a sword appeared on the battlefield for a moment, and from the center appeared a warrior clad in magnificent dark-blue armor with gold trim. A large red plum adorned his helmet. In his right hand he carried a saber, and in his left a small shield that matched his armor.

"Gaia Power raises my Soldier's ATK to 3500!" Striker pointed out. "But that's not all. I now activate my Trap, Metalmorph! I equip it to Black Luster Soldier and raise his ATK to 3800!"

The armor of Black Luster Soldier turned from dark-blue to black and took on a reflective quality. At the same time the trim of his armor turned from gold to silver.

"Black Luster Soldier, attack Rainbow Dragon!" Striker commanded. "Shining Chaos Blade!"

"Are you nuts?" Jessie exclaimed as the knight charged at Rainbow Dragon. "Rainbow Dragon still has 200 more ATK points than Black Luster Soldier!"

"Yeah, but when a monster equipped with Metalmorph attacks a monster, it gains half that monster's ATK during the battle." Striker pointed out.

With one powerful swing of Black Luster Soldier's sword, the dragon was cut in half. Jessie's remaining life points dropped to zero and the monsters still on the field vanished.

"And the winner of this duel is Jason 'Striker' Morgan!" Amane announced, causing the audience to cheer.

"Told ya Striker would win." Clive said to Jaden.

"I guess you were right." Jaden replied.

"Okay, in five minutes we'll finish up the quarterfinals with a duel between our remaining finalists, Clive Winston and Tamao Suzumi." Amane announced. "For right now, feel free to go stretch your legs."

As the audience filed out of the stadium and Jessie and Striker stepped off the stage, Jaden looked over at Tamao. Tamao noticed him and simply beamed back an innocent smile. Jaden knew that something really bad was soon going to happen.

* * *

**Author's Note:** So I think you can guess how the duel between Tamao and Clive is going to end. You know I kinda feel like Jessie has been underused in this story. I had originally planed to show Jessie in another duel earlier in the story, but I decided to cut that chapter because I felt that it didn't move the story forward very much.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	23. Fall of the Gambler

**Author's Note:** This chapter ended up being a pretty quick write. Here we begin to see the extent of Tamao's power as the Dark Queen.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 22: Fall of the Gambler

The last duel of the quarterfinal round of the Astraea Star Cup was only five minutes away. Jaden and the others had gathered together in the waiting room. Both Jaden and Jessie were deeply concerned about the next duel. They knew very well the dark power that Tamao had become capable of, but Striker and Clive remained ignorant. And Jaden didn't know how to tell Clive of the danger he might be in.

"Well, I guess they've saved the best for last in this tournament." Clive commented with a confident grin. "After this duel I'll finally have a chance to pay back Striker for our last duel."

"You shouldn't get overconfident Clive." Jaden warned in a serious tone. "Tamao might be more dangerous than she looks."

"What? You don't seriously believe all those rumors about her, do ya?" Striker asked Jaden. "I mean, I will admit that things get a little weird when dueling those Four Witches, but you talk about Tamao like she's evil incarnate or something."

At that point Amane entered the room.

"Okay everybody, we're ready to start." Amane said to the assembled finalists. "If you'll all come out to the stage please."

Tamao and Jane got up from the couch and headed out to the stage.

"Hey Ms. Tamao." Clive called as he got up, causing Tamao to stop and look. "I hope there won't be any hard feelings after I beat ya."

"I hope the same can be said for when I defeat you." Tamao said with an innocent smile before continuing out.

* * *

Back in Chikaru's room at the dorms, Chikaru was still on the couch with Shion watching the tournament from her TV. Shion stirred and sat up.

"Hey there." Shion said as she cuddled up closer to Chikaru and kissed her on the cheek. "You seem to be doing a lot better since last night."

"You seem to be doing a lot better too." Chikaru replied before kissing Shion back. "The last duel of the quarterfinals is about to start."

"Oh? Who's dueling?" Shion asked, though it was clear that she was more interested in making out with Chikaru.

"Tamao and Clive are dueling next." Chikaru answered in a somewhat serious tone.

"So it's those two?" Shion said, her interest now focused on the tournament. "You think lover boy Clive can win?"

"I don't know, but I have a bad feeling about this duel." Chikaru answered.

* * *

Back at the stadium, Clive and Tamao had already gotten on stage. Everyone in the audience had returned to their seats.

"By the decision of the coin toss, Tamao shall go first." Amane announced into her microphone. "Let the duel… begin!"

With the life points of both duelists set to 4000, Tamao drew her first card.

"First I activate Terraforming and add a Field Spell to my hand." Tamao calmly announced. "And now I activate my Field Spell, The Seal of Orichalcos!"

The outer ring of the seal then descended from above onto the stage around Tamao and Clive. The shockwave from the ring's landing knocked Hikari and Amane off the stage. Jaden, Jessie, and Striker ran over to check on the two girls as the seal finished forming.

"Are you two okay?" Jaden asked the couple.

"We're fine." Amane replied. "What the heck was that though?"

"It is worse than we thought!" Timeaus said to Jaden as he, Critias, and Hermos appeared in their knight forms. "Tamao has the forbidden seal."

"What does this card do?" Jaden asked the knights.

"When a duelist loses while The Seal of Orichalcos is in play, his soul is claimed by the seal." Critias answered gravely. "Unless your friend Clive can triumph, his soul will be trapped."

"Now then, for my next move I summon Orichalcos Strength Drainer in Attack Mode." Tamao announced.

Appearing on the field was a hunched-over grey-skinned humanoid figure with long arms wearing a black muscle shirt, black jeans, black leather gloves, and black combat boots. A black leather mask covered his head. There were red lenses over the eyeholes, and the mouth hole was zipped shut. Around his neck on a thick iron chain was a silver medallion with a large green gemstone. The moment the creature appeared a smaller version of the seal appeared on its forehead.

"Normally my Orichalcos Strength Drainer only has 1900 ATK. But with The Seal of Orichalcos on the field, the ATK of all my monsters on the field is increase by 500 points." Tamao explained. "With that I end my turn."

"I will admit that that was a weird Field Spell you just played, but I'm not worried." Clive said confidently as he drew his first card. "First I discard one card to summon The Tricky!"

Appearing on the field was a jester-like creature in yellow and black. His face was completely covered by a mask with a red question mark on the front.

"Now I sacrifice The Tricky to summon one of my favorite monsters, Blowback Dragon!" Clive announced.

The Tricky shattered into triangles of gold light, and in his place appeared an armless red mechanical dragon with a gun for a head.

"Now I activate the effect of Blowback Dragon!" Clive announced. "I flip three coins, and if two out of three of those coins are heads, I can destroy one card on my opponent's field. So let's go!"

With that, three large gold coins suddenly flipped down onto the battlefield from the sky. The coin on Clive's left landed with its blank side facing up, but the other two coins landed with the side engraved with the Millennium Eye face-up.

"Oh yeah, I'm on fire!" Clive exclaimed. "Two out of three heads, so now Blowback Dragon, destroy The Seal of Orichalcos!"

The mechanical dragon fired a large shell from its gun barrel nose into the ground, causing a huge explosion. When the smoke cleared however, The Seal of Orichalcos still shined on the ground.

"What the heck?" Clive asked, looking both confused and a bit outraged.

"Oh silly me, I forgot to mention that The Seal of Orichalcos can't be destroyed once played." Tamao said with an innocent smile. "Sorry about that."

"Grr… I end my turn!" Clive announced with a look if disgust. Tamao drew her next card.

"Since I have The Seal of Orichalcos on the field, I special summon Orichalcos Rejuvenator in Defense Mode!" Tamao announced.

Appearing on the field sitting in a cross-legged position was a figure in dark-blue robes and hood. On his face was a metallic gasmask with black hoses connected to a large metal tank on his back. The tank was connected to a metal chest plate, and on the top of the tank was a large green gemstone.

"Now I activate the effect of Orichalcos Strength Drainer and cut the ATK of Blowback Dragon in half!" Tamao announced.

The mask-wearing creature stretched his arms forward. The stone of his medallion began to glow, and soon red energy was being pulled from Blowback Dragon into the Strength Drainer's hands.

"Of course that's not all. While The Seal of Orichalcos is on the field, my Strength Drainer's effect increases my life points equal to half the ATK points of the monster it drains." Tamao explained. "And now the effect of Orichalcos Rejuvenator kicks in. Whenever my life points are increased by a card effect, my Rejuvenator increases my life points equal to the number of monsters on my side of the field times 500."

A green light then began to shine from the Strength Drainer's back and hit Tamao. At the same time a beam of green light came from the gemstone on the Rejuvenator's tank and also hit Tamao. Tamao's life points then rose to 6150.

"Next I equip Strength Drainer with Axe of Despair!" Tamao announced. "This increases his ATK to 3400."

A sinister looking axe with a knarred-looking handle appeared in the Strength Drainer's right hand. The axe seemed to glow with an evil red aura.

"Strength Drainer, destroy Blowback Dragon with Life Force Extinguisher!" Tamao commanded.

The masked creature fired an orb of black energy from his left hand. The orb hit Blowback dragon and reduced it to dust. Clive's life points plummeted to 1750 as a result.

"I believe I'll end my turn." Tamao announced. Clive drew his next card and smiled when he saw what it was.

"Tell me something Tamao, are you a gambler?" Clive asked.

"It's foolish to depend on luck." Tamao answered bluntly.

"Well you're about to take a gamble! I activate the Spell card, Question!" Clive announced. "Now you have to guess the first monster in my Graveyard. If you guess right, it gets removed from the game, but if you guess wrong I can summon that monster to the field. So tell me what it is Tamao!"

"What an easy question." Tamao said with a confident smile. "The card at the bottom of your Graveyard is The Tricky. You sent it there yourself when you summoned Blowback Dragon."

"Close but wrong." Clive said, startling Tamao. "The monster at the bottom of my Graveyard is another favorite of mine, Barrel Dragon!"

Appearing on the field was a gigantic iron-grey mechanical dragon with a revolver for a head. Instead of arms it had two other revolving gun barrels.

"I see, you discarded Barrel Dragon when you summoned The Tricky." Tamao realized with a look of irritation.

"Yep, and now I activate my Barrel Dragon's effect!" Clive announced. "I flip three coins, and if at least two out of three are heads, I can destroy one of my opponent's monsters. So let's go!"

Three large gold coins flipped onto the battlefield, all three landed with the Millennium Eye facing up.

"Yes! Barrel Dragon destroys Orichalcos Strength Drainer!" Clive announced proudly.

The dragon fired a shell from the gun barrel on its head. The shell hit Tamao's monster and caused a huge explosion. When the smoke cleared however, a new monster was standing in the Strength Drainer's place. It was a woman with long blue hair and light green eyes. From the sidelines Jaden thought that the woman looked like how Tamao would look if she were in her twenties. The woman wore a flowing blue dress and a matching cape with a long collar. On her head was a blue conical hat and around her neck was an amulet with the symbol of the Orichalcos on it. In her right hand the woman carried a long silver staff with a green orb on top.

"What the…?" a confused Clive exclaimed.

"Since a Spellcaster monster of mine was destroyed, I can special summon Orichalcos Witch from my hand." Tamao explained. "And since she was summoned by her own effect, all other monsters on the field are destroyed."

The witch raised her staff in the air, and the orb on the end gave off an explosion of green light that vaporized both Barrel Dragon and Orichalcos Rejuvenator.

"I… end my turn." Clive reluctantly announced after he saw there was nothing more he could do.

"As I said before, it's foolish to depend on luck." Tamao said as she drew her next card. "Luck is such an unstable thing. And in this game all the good luck in the world cannot help if your opponent has a good strategy. It's a shame you had to learn that the hard way. Now then, the ATK of Orichalcos Witch is normally 2800, but thanks to the seal it's raised to 3300. Orichalcos Witch, finish this duel with Orichalcos Magic Blast!"

The witch fired a large ball of green energy from her staff, which hit Clive with enough force to throw him against the invisible barrier of the seal. The attack dropped his life points to zero. Just as Clive got back to his feet, the seal suddenly began to shrink and change position until it was only around Clive.

"W-What's going on?" Clive asked in a terrified tone.

"Oh dear, I guess I also forgot to tell you that The Seal of Orichalcos traps the soul of the one who loses the duel." Tamao said with an innocent smile. "So sorry about that. But I hope there are still no hard feelings."

"You little…" Clive began to curse as a pillar of green light shot up from the seal. When the light cleared, Clive's soulless husk fell to the ground face first.

* * *

Back in Chikaru's room, both Chikaru and Shion were confused and concerned by what they just saw on the screen.

"What just happened?" Shion asked.

"I don't know, but I think we should go find out." Chikaru told her. Shion nodded in agreement and went to go get dressed.

* * *

Clive's soulless body had been taken to Miator's infirmary. Jaden, Jessie, and Striker had gone with, as did Hikari and Amane. Yaya and Tsubomi had showed up a few minutes after they had arrived. The doctors of course could find nothing physically wrong with Clive of course. Eventually both Shion and Chikaru had arrived.

"Is Clive okay?" Chikaru asked.

"The doctors say he's in some kind of coma, but they don't know the cause." Striker said sadly. Then an angry look came to his eyes as he turned to face Jaden. "But you do, don't you Jaden? Both you and Jessie know what's going on here so spill!"

Jaden and Jessie both looked at each other for a moment before turning back to Striker.

"Tamao's Field Spell card, The Seal of Orichalcos…. It trapped Clive's soul when he lost." Jaden finally answered.

"What do you mean trapped his soul?" Striker demanded to know.

"I mean his soul got removed from his body and… put somewhere else." Jaden answered.

At that moment Shion fell to her knees with a shocked and frightened expression on her face.

"So that means… if Chikaru dueled Tamao then… her soul would've been trapped too." Shion realized. "I-I would've lost her."

"It's okay Shion, that didn't happen." Chikaru told her as she got down and hugged her from behind.

"Damn it, why didn't you tell us about all this?" Striker angrily demanded as he stormed over and grabbed Jaden by the jacket.

"Would you have believed me if I did?" Jaden retorted. Striker backed down and let go of Jaden. "Besides, I didn't even know about the seal until today."

"Okay then, so how do we get Clive's soul back?" Striker asked as he regained his calm.

"I honestly don't know." Jaden answered. "We might be able to get it back if we beat Tamao, but I don't know for sure."

"Then I'm gonna find out!" Striker declared as he stormed out of the room.

"Great, now what do we do?" Yaya asked the group.

"Maybe Hikari and I should talk to the headmistress about stopping the tournament." Amane suggested.

"That won't do any good." Jaden told her. "Tamao is planning to destroy the world, and she'll go on with that plan whether there's a tournament or not."

"So then what do we do?" Tsubomi asked.

"Right now we can't do anything." Jaden answered gravely. "Nothing except go ahead with the tournament and hope for the best."

* * *

Back at the Miator student council room, Tamao and Jane had arrived to find the other three members of the Four Witches waiting for them.

"Congratulations on your victory Lady Tamao." Hiyori said with a bow.

"Thank you Hiyori." Tamao said as she walked up to the device containing the shard of The Great Leviathan and presented The Seal of Orichalcos to it. Clive's soul flew out of the card and into one of the panels on the top part of the device. "Tell me Hiyori, how far ahead will the addition of this soul put us?"

"I'll have to do a more detailed analysis, but The Great Leviathan should be revived at any time now." Hiyori answered.

"Splendid." Tamao replied. "Well, this tournament is turning out to be far more interesting than I thought. I suppose in the end it will come down to me and Jaden Yuki."

"Do not worry Lady Tamao." Jane suddenly said. "I will crush Jaden Yuki before he gets that far."

"Perhaps." Tamao said as she turned to face her underlings. "But then perhaps not. We've all made the mistake of underestimating Jaden. And he does have the three knights of Atlantis behind him. It could be that before we can remake the world, we must settle the grudge between the Legendary Knights and the Orichalcos once and for all. The whole tournament seems to have been leading to this showdown. And it is a showdown that I intend to win."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Incidentally, I based my descriptions of Barrel Dragon and Blowback Dragon based on the Japanese artwork of the cards. Anyway, for those who actually play the card, Tamao's Orichalcos deck is basically a beatdown/heal deck. A friend of mine says that's a really hard deck to beat. Orichalcos Witch has a few more effects that have yet to be shown in this story, but you'll see them before too long.

Well, only three duels in this story left to go, but the story is far from over. Please review and let me know what you think.


	24. Heartless

**Author's Note:** I had meant to get this chapter done yesterday, but I got an idea for another story I may do in the future and wanted to get down before I forgot. It ended up taking most of the night. Plus I was worn out from spending four hours in 99 degree heat (long story). But here it is finally.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 23: Heartless

The final day of the Astraea Star Cup Tournament had come. The final duel would soon begin, but first the duels of the semifinals were to take place. The first of these was the duel between Jaden and Jane. The stadium was once again packed with students and teachers from all three schools. As the duel was about to begin, Jaden and Jessie made their way out to the stage. They found Chikaru, Shion, Yaya, and Tsubomi waiting there to greet them as they entered.

"Hey guys." Jaden greeted. "What're you doing here?"

"What does it look like? We're here to cheer you on." Tsubomi told him. "I'd think that'd be pretty obvious. Where's Striker?"

"We haven't seen him since leaving the guesthouse this morning." Jessie answered. "I guess he's avoiding us since he's mad that we didn't tell him about the stuff with Tamao and the Four Witches."

"It's now time to being the first duel of the semifinal round." Amane announced on stage. "Jane Hawthorn and Jaden Yuki, please get up on stage."

"I guess it's time." Jaden said to the others.

"Good luck." Chikaru told him. "And be careful against Jane."

Jaden nodded and headed up on stage. When he got there, Jaden noticed that Tamao, Mika, Hiyori, and Tomoyo were down on the sidelines.

"By decision of the coin toss, Jane Hawthron shall go first." Amane announced and Jaden and Jane prepared to face each other. "Let the duel… begin!"

"I set one monster on the field!" Jane announced after drawing her first card. "Then I set two cards on the field and end my turn!"

Jaden looked at his hand after drawing his first card. He found that it looked promising.

"First I summon Elemental Hero Prisma!" Jaden announced. Appearing on the field was a warrior made out of clear crystal. A large pair of crystal wings adorned his back. "Now I activate Prisma's effect, and send Elemental Hero Necroshade to the Graveyard to have Prisma become Necroshade this turn!"

Prisma's body shimmered and soon he transformed into a hulking creature that was mostly red and had large claws and yellow eyes.

"Now I activate Polymerization!" Jaden announced. "I use it to fuse Elemental Hero Necroshade on my field with Elemental Hero Sparkman in my hand to summon Elemental Hero Darkbright!"

Sparkman appeared momentarily on the field before merging together with Necroshade. The resulting fusion was what looked to be an enhanced from of Sparkman with a black bodysuit instead of a blue one. The mask on his face was red, and attached to the gold armor on his torso was a pair of large wings.

"Darkbright, attack Jane's set monster!" Jaden commanded. "Dark Flash!"

From his right hand, Darkbright shot a black lightning bolt that hit the monster. The monster in question was a female elf with blue skin and blond hair wearing a green dress. When the lighting bolt hit, the elf survived, as if the attack hi an invisible barrier.

"The DEF points of my Mystical Elf 2000, the same amount as Darkbright's ATK." Jane pointed out.

"After Darkbright attacks, it switches to Defense Mode!" Jaden announced as Darkbright suddenly took a kneeling position. "I end my turn!"

"I activate Orichalcos Ritual!" Jane announced. "I sacrifice my Mystical Elf and your Elemental Hero Darkbright to summon Wraith King of the North!"

The symbol of the Orichalcos Ritual appeared on the battlefield. Bolts of energy shot up from the symbol and slowly broke down both monsters. When the two were fully consumed, the symbol turned from green to red, and a pillar of red light shot up into the air. The lights in the stadium went out, and a cold luminescent mist suddenly rolled in. Once it cleared, the Wraith King of the North was standing on the field looking every bit like the grim specter of death. Down on the sidelines, Shion was holding a cold terrified Chikaru close to her.

"Since I can't attack I end my turn." Jane coldly announced. Jaden drew his next card.

"First I play Pot of Greed and draw two more cards!" Jaden announced. "Next I activate another Polymerization and fuse Elemental Hero Burstinatrix and Elemental Hero Clayman in my hand to summon Elemental Hero Rampart Blaster in Defense Mode!"

Appearing in the field in a crouched position was a warrior that looked like Burstinatrix wearing an enhanced version of Clayman's armor. On her left arm was a red shield and on her right a futuristic blaster.

"Since Rampart Blaster is in Defense Mode, she can attack you directly!" Jaden announced. "Rampart Blaster, attack Jane with Rampart Shot!"

"I activate my Trap, Negate Attack!" Jane announced as Rampart Blaster fired off a blast from her cannon. The attack was sucked into a vortex that appeared in front of Jane.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced. Jane drew her next card.

"I equip Wraith King of the North with Fairy Meteor Crush!" Jane announced. The Wraith King began to glow with a red aura that made him seem more frightening. "This card allows Wraith King to inflict battle damage when he destroys a monster in Defense Mode. Now Wraith King of the North, slaughter Rampart Blaster with Sword of Malice!"

With that, the Wraith King threw back his cloak and slowly drew his black sword. Then faster than anyone could see, the creature charged over to the other side of the field and stabbed Rampart Blaster through the chest. The armored hero's body slumped down onto the field and faded away. Jaden's life points dropped to 2700.

"I end my turn!" Jane announced coldly. "And since Wraith King destroyed Rampart Blaster, I now summon it to my side of the field in Defense Mode!"

Rampart Blaster reappeared on the other side of the battlefield in a kneeling position next to the Wraith King. Her red helmet and shield had turned grey, while the rest of her armor became pitch-black. The part of her face that was visible had turned chalk-white and gave off an unearthly glow.

"How does it feel to have the true nature of your monster revealed?" Jane asked.

"What're you talking about?" Jaden replied.

"My Wraith King of the North reveals the true nature of the monsters he destroys." Jane explained. "He transforms them into what they truly are on the inside, heartless lying creatures. Deep down the monsters we use in our duels are the same as people."

"I still don't know what you're talking about." Jaden told her.

"Two years ago I attended a duel academy in England." Jane began. "When I started going there I was nervous, but I quickly made friends. And I also fell madly in love with someone there. Her name was Amanda, and the moment we met she swept me off my feet. We were crazy about each other. Or at least… I was crazy about her.

"One day I was walking around the school looking for Amanda. I found her all right, inside a classroom snogging another girl. I was furious, and burst in on them. The girl trollop Amanda was with was startled of course, but Amanda just started laughing at me. She told me that there was noting special between us, that I was just another to get close to.

"I ran out of the room in tears. I couldn't believe that everything that Amanda ever said to me, like how much she loved me or that I was the only one for her, were all just lies. I went to go find my friends and tell them what happened, and I found them all right. But when I did I overheard them talking about me. I won't bore you with the details, but I basically found out that they were only using me. It was no secret that my family is quite wealthy, and my so-called friends were only spending time with me to try and get certain favors.

"I couldn't remain at the academy after that. I went home hoping to find comfort with my family, but what I found instead disgusted me. I walked into the house to find my mother locked in a passionate kiss with a man that was not my father. She told me not long after that that her little affair was no secret, and that my father was doing the same thing with his secretary. I was appalled; I thought my parents loved each other. But it was just another lie, and then I realized the one great truth about the world. And the truth is that everyone is a liar, everyone is heartless. A person may tell you that they're your friend or that they love you, but in the end all they care about is themselves."

Jaden was rather stunned by the story that Jane had told him. Back down on the sidelines, tears were streaming down Tomoyo's face. Though Tamao, Mika, and Hiyori were too focused on the duel to notice.

"I'm sorry about what happened to you…" Jaden said to Jane. "But not everyone is a liar."

"And I'm supposed to believe that from you?" Jane laughed sarcastically. "You're just another liar like everyone else. There's only one person in this world who isn't a liar, and that is the person who gave me the power I have now…"

* * *

_Not long after Jane had transferred to Miator, she was out taking a walk behind the dorms. It seemed to be the only place on the island where she could get away from everyone else._

_"Excuse me, but would you happen to be Jane Hawthorn?" a voice suddenly asked. Jane turned around to see that it was Tamao. "My name's Tamao Suzumi. I'm running for Miator Student Council President, and I would love to have your help."_

_"I'm not interested." Jane replied coldly._

_"Here me out." Tamao said as she got in Jane's path to prevent her from walking away. "I've heard about what a skilled duelist you are, and I believe that together we can create a new world."_

_"I told you I'm not interested, now get lost!" Jane snapped._

_"I also heard about the pain you went through at your old academy." Tamao said, stopping Jane in her tracks. "I can sympathize with your pain, believe me. Rejection is a cruel thing. But I can help you."_

_"And I'm supposed to believe you?" Jane asked with sarcasm in her voice._

_"Look into my eyes." Tamao told her. "Do I seem like I'm lying?"_

_Jane looked into Tamao's Orichalcos green eyes and was shocked to see that seemed to show the absolute truth in Tamao's heart._

_"You think that all people are liars, that no one can be trusted." Tamao observed. "I am not like that though. I possess the stone that reveals the truth, and I can give you the power to reveal the truth within others."_

_Tamao held up her hand with the Orichalcos Stone ring, and with a blinding flash of green light a pair of cards appeared in her hand. One was the Orichalcos Ritual Spell, and the other was Wraith King of the North._

_"Consider these a gift." Tamao told Jane. "The only thing I ask of you in return is your help in creating a new world, a pure world, one that you might find to your liking. So how about it, care to lend me a hand?"_

* * *

"After that I agreed to help Lady Tamao." Jane said as she wrapped up her tale. "Together we shall destroy this world of lies and create a world of truth! And I will break anyone who gets in the way of our goal!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** So at last I finally reveal Jane's backstory. It actually changed a little bit from how I originally envisioned it.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	25. Eye, Fang, and Claw

**Author's Note:** Here it is, the finale of the duel between Jaden and Jane. I've actually been looking forward to writing this part for months.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 24: Eye, Fang, and Claw

The duel between Jaden and Jane of the Four Witches had begun. Already Jane had summoned the Wraith King of the North and used its effect to capture Jaden's Rampart Blaster. And afterward Jane had revealed her tragic past and her reasons for helping Tamao. Jaden drew his next card to begin his turn. He wanted to somehow show Jane that not all people are liars like her former friends and ex-girlfriend, but first he had to do something about Jane's monster.

"First I lay down a facedown! Then I play The Fang of Critias!" Jaden announced. Critias roared onto the field in his dragon form. "Now I combine Critias with the Soul Union card I just played facedown to create Heroic Soul Dragon!"

The large representation of Jaden's Trap entered Critias and triggered a transformation. The wings on the dragon's back became feathered and looked similar to those of Elemental Hero Avian. His scales had become green to match Avian's costume, and a mask similar to Avian's appeared on Critias's face.

"Now I activate the effect of Heroic Soul Dragon and remove Darkbright in my Graveyard from play!" Jaden announced. A ghostly version of Darkbright appeared on the field and entered Heroic Soul Dragon, causing it to glow with a reddish aura. "This will add Darkbright's ATK to Heroic Soul Dragon's, making Heroic Soul Dragon's ATK 4100!"

"Jaden just summoned a monster that's stronger than Wraith King of the North!" Tsubomi exclaimed enthusiastically down on the sidelines.

"Heroic Soul Dragon, attack Wraith King of the North with…" Jaden began to command.

"I activate my Trap, Nightmare Wheel!" Jane announced. "This prevents your dragon from attacking!"

A gigantic torture wheel appeared on the field behind Heroic Soul Dragon and snared it with four chains. The chains pulled the dragon in and bound it to the wheel.

"I guess I'll lay down a facedown and end my turn!" Jaden announced. Jane drew her next card.

"Because I'm beginning my turn, my Nightmare Wheel now inflicts 500 points of damage to my opponent." Jane announced. The giant torture wheel started to turn, stretching the bound Heroic Soul Dragon and causing it to roar in pain. Jaden's life points dropped to 2200 as a result. "Now Rampart Blaster attacks directly, Rampart Shot!"

"I activate my Trap, Draining Shield!" Jaden announced as the corrupted Rampart Blaster fired her energy cannon. "This not only blocks the attack, but increases my life points by an amount equal the damage I would've taken!"

A silver shield appeared over Jaden's duel disk. He raised the shield up, causing the energy blast to hit it. The shield vanished and Jaden's life points rose to 3200.

"I end my turn." Jane announced coldly. Jaden drew his next card.

"Because I have no cards on the field I Special Summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman in Defense Mode!" Jaden announced. A caped hero in blue armor with water tanks on his back appeared on the field in a crouched position. "Now because I summoned Bubbleman with his effect I can draw two extra cards!"

Jaden drew his two extra cards hoping for a miracle. And that was exactly what he got.

"I activate the effect of Necroshade in my Graveyard and summon from my hand, Elemental Hero Neos!" Jaden announced. The white suited hero of space appeared on the field. "Now I play The Eye of Timaeus and combine him with Neos!"

Timaeus roared onto the field in his dragon form. Neos then jumped high into the air, and Timaeus flew after him. The two monsters kept going higher and higher until they were both out of sight. A moment later Neos returned to the field in a new form. His bodysuit has turned from white to green. The symbol of a white dragon surrounded the dark-blue gemstone on Neos's chest. Parts of Neos's mask changed to resemble the head of a dragon.

"Say hello to Dragonic Neos!" Jaden announced.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe your monster's ATK is still 2500." Jane pointed out.

"You're right about that, but that's not gonna stop me from attacking!" Jaden told her. "Neos, attack Wraith King of the North with Dragonic Wrath!"

Neos charged at the Wraith King. The Wraith King responded by drawing his sword and swinging it at Neos to cut him in half. But Neos caught the sword blade in his hands, causing the grim specter's eyes to widen in surprise.

"What's going on?" Jane demanded to know.

"Dragonic Neos can't be destroyed in battle, and I don't take any damage if he fights a monster with higher ATK." Jaden explained. "But that's not all, when Dragonic Neos battles a monster with higher ATK, that monster loses 1000 ATK points at the end of the battle!"

As if on cue, Neos broke the blade of the Wraith King's sword in half. He then hit the Wraith King in the gut with his fist. Neos then finished the attack with a roundhouse kick to the specter's head, knocking him to the ground. The Wraith King's ATK had fallen to 2800.

"Awesome, one more attack and Neos will be stronger than the Wraith King!" Yaya pointed out down on the sidelines.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced.

"My Nightmare Wheel now inflicts 500 more points of damage." Jane pointed out after drawing her card. On cue the wheel turned, causing the dragon to roar in pain again. Jaden's life points dropped to 2700. "I will admit that your last move was quite good, but you've also left yourself wide open. Wraith King of the North! Attack Bubbleman with Sword of Malice!"

The malevolent entity got back up, and faster than anyone could see charged over and stabbed Bubbleman through the chest with what remained of his sword. Bubbleman's body slumped onto the field and faded away. Jaden's life points dropped to 1100.

"Rampart Blaster, attack Jaden directly!" Jane commanded. "Rampart Shot!"

The corrupted armored hero fired a blast from her cannon that knocked Jaden to the ground. His life points fell to 100.

"I end my turn!" Jane announced as Jaden got back to his feet. "And because of that, Wraith King of the North's effect activates. So now I summon Bubbleman to my side of the field in Defense Mode!"

Bubbleman reappeared on the other side of the battlefield in a crouched position. His armor had become dull grey and his cape had become tattered. Bubbleman's eyes had turned bright red, and the part of his face that was visible had become chalk white and gave off an eerie glow.

"Enjoy your next turn to its fullest, for it will be your last." Jane told Jaden coldly.

"Wait, if Jaden doesn't find a way to win on this next turn, Jane's Nightmare Wheel will finish him off." Shion realized down on the sidelines.

"Don't worry, J. will pull it off." Jessie assured her. Meanwhile Jaden drew his next card.

"I play The Claw of Hermos!" Jaden announced. Upon playing the card he just drew, Hermos roared onto the field in his dragon form. "I now combine Hermos with Heroic Soul Dragon to create Sword of a Hero's Legacy!"

The two dragons merged into each other, creating a massive explosion of white light. When the light finally cleared, an ancient looking sword was sticking out of the ground in place of where Heroic Soul Dragon.

"Next I equip Sword of a Hero's Legacy to Neos!" Jaden announced. Neos walked over and drew the sword from the ground. "Now I activate the effect of Sword of a Hero's Legacy and remove Prisma from the Graveyard to give Neos Prisma's ATK, making it 4200!"

A ghostly version of Elemental Hero Prisma appeared and flew into the blade of Neos's sword. Neos began to glow with a golden aura.

"Impressive, Jaden Yuki has found a way to combine the power of all three Legendary Dragon's." Tamao commented on the sidelines to the other three members of the Four Witches. "I'm afraid that this duel will end just like I predicted it would."

"Neos, finish off the Wraith King of the North!" Jaden commanded. "Heroic Soul Blade!"

Neos Charged forward and impaled the Wraith King through the chest with his sword. Jane's life points dropped to 2600, yet the Wraith King remained on the field.

"Another good move, but I'm afraid you've activated another effect of my Wraith King of the North." Jane explained. "When Wraith King is destroyed, it takes all other cards on the field with it!"

The Wraith King of the North suddenly began to implode. The sound of air being let out of a balloon could be heard from the dying specter. Suddenly the Wraith King exploded in a mass of blue flames. It seemed like everything on the battlefield had been destroyed, but when the smoke cleared, Neos was standing on the field in his original form. The white hero of space was still glowing with a gold aura.

"What's… going on?" Jane asked with an expression of shock on her face.

"When Dragonic Neos is destroyed, I can summon the original Neos back to the field." Jaden explained. "Not only that, but since Sword of a Hero's Legacy was destroyed, I can increase the ATK of one of my monsters on the field by 1000 points. Which means Neos's ATK is now 3500!"

"As I said, this duel has ended just as I predicted it would." Tamao commented on the sidelines. Meanwhile Tomoyo was looking on with a concerned expression.

"Let's end this Neos!" Jaden commanded. "Attack Jane directly with Wrath of Neos!"

Neos charged at Jane and raised his fist to attack. Just as he started to deliver the punch, Tomoyo suddenly leapt up in front of Jane and took the attack. This resulted in both Tomoyo and Jane being knocked to the ground. Despite Tomoyo's interference, Jane's life points dropped to zero and the duel ended. The audience remained silent.

"Um… the winner of this duel is Jaden Yuki!" Amane declared after a moment, causing the audience to cheer. Meanwhile Jane was cradling Tomoyo in her arms. It seemed the attack of Neos had cause her real damage.

"Why did jump in the way like that?" a confused Jane asked.

"Because I swore that I would protect you." Tomoyo replied.

"But why? I still don't understand!" Jane told her. "What reason would you have to risk your life for me?"

"Because… I love you Jane." Tomoyo admitted, catching Jane completely off guard.

"You're… actually in love with me?" Jane asked in disbelief.

"I think that'd be pretty obvious by what you just saw." Jaden said to Jane as he walked up to the two girls. "The people of this world aren't all heartless liars who only care about themselves. There are a lot of people out there who care about others way more than themselves. You know I just couldn't figure out why Tomoyo was helping Tamao. I asked her once when the finals began, and she told me there was something she was trying to protect, and I guess that something was you. Anyway, I think a lot of time a person shows who they really are though their actions, and if that's true Tomoyo has just shown you that she really cares about you."

With that, Jaden turned and began walking off the stage. Yubel appeared next to him as he did so.

"You handled that pretty well." Yubel told him.

"You think I got through to Jane?" Jaden asked.

"If you didn't, Tomoyo certainly did." Yubel replied.

"Well, I guess now we have to worry about facing Tamao." Jaden responded.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I had the ending of this duel planed out almost since coming up with the idea for this story. I thought it would be really cool to have Jaden combine Hermos with a monster created by one of the other two Legendary Dragons. That was something never done in the anime (not that I can remember anyway). Anyway, there are just two duels left in this story, the next one of course is between Tamao and Striker. So stay tuned.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	26. Vow

**Author's Note:** This next part was originally going to be split into two chapters, but the duel ended up being so short that I thought it might as well be one chapter. It's just as well since we're getting close to the end of this story.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 25: Vow

The epic duel between Jaden and Jane had just ended. The audience members had begun to file out of the stadium to stretch their legs and perhaps take a restroom break if they needed it. Meanwhile, Jane was taking a wounded Tomoyo to Miator's infirmary. Tomoyo did not seem too badly hurt, but Jane didn't want to take any chances. But just as the two were about to leave the stadium, Tamao, Mika, and Hiyori showed up.

"You two have proven to be quite a disappointment." Tamao commented as she raised her right hand. The stone of her Orichalcos ring glowed, and in a flash of green light the cards for Wraith King of the North and Swift Goblin of the South, along with the two Orichalcos Ritual Spell cards, appeared in Tamao's hand. "Your usefulness to me has ended. Consider yourselves off the student council."

Suddenly, four large muscular demons with dark-blue skin wearing thick armor appeared in front of Jane and Tomoyo.

"Destroy them my Orichalcos Soldiers." Tamao commanded, startling both Mika and Hiyori.

Just as one of the demon soldiers was about to lunge at Jane and Tomoyo, Neos appeared and delivered a devastating punch to its jaw. The fallen demon shattered as if it were a Duel Monster. Timaeus, Critias, and Hermos then appeared in their dragon forms and roasted the other three demons with their fiery breath.

"Leave them alone Tamao!" Jaden shouted as he walked up to the group with his Yubel eyes glowing brightly.

"Interfering again, eh Jaden?" Tamao commented with an amused expression. "Well it doesn't matter. I'm very close to resurrecting The Great Leviathan, so either way Jane and Tomoyo will be destroyed in the end. Mika, Hiyori, let's go."

With that, Tamao turned to leave, but Mika and Hiyori stayed behind for a moment.

"Uh Lady Tamao, don't you think that trying to kill Jane and Tomoyo is going a little too far?" Mika suddenly asked.

"I'm surprised to hear something like that from you Mika." Tamao said after stopping in her tracks. "Could it be that you've gotten soft?"

"…Killing Jane and Tomoyo does seem a little extreme Lady Tamao." Hoyori commented.

"I see, it seems that you have softened as well Hiyori." Tamao observed. She raised her right hand, and in a flash of green light the cards for Wicked Tree of the East and Dark Orc of the West appeared in that hand, as did the corresponding copies of the Orichalos Ritual Spells. "Your usefulness to me has also ended."

With that, Tamao walked off to the stadium waiting room. Jaden then turned his attention back to Jane and Tomoyo.

"C'mon, let's get you two to the infirmary." Jaden said to the two girls.

* * *

A few minutes later, Jaden, Jane, and Tomoyo arrived at the Miator infirmary. Mika and Hiyori went with them, as did Jaden's usual entourage minus Striker. The doctor had examined Tomoyo and found that she had only a few cracked ribs. But it was decided that Tomoyo stay for a few hours to make sure that her injuries weren't more serious. Jane decided to stay with her, and Jaden and the others decided to hang around there for a while as well.

"Um, thank you for saving us." Jane said to Jaden. "Though I can't understand why you did. You had every reason to sit back and watch Tamao destroy us."

"You were only being used by Tamao, and I'm not the type to just stand by and watch someone get killed." Jaden told her. "And right now all I'm worried about is stopping Tamao."

"If you want to do that, there might be a way." Mika cut in. "She needs The Great Leviathan for her plan to work, so if you get rid of that she's finished."

"And how do you suggest we get rid of this Leviathan thing?" Shion asked.

"The last fragment of The Great Leviathan is being kept in a device in the Miator Student Council room." Hiyori answered somewhat hesitantly. "In theory if you destroy the fragment you should destroy the Leviathan once and for all."

"Then let's go take care of it then." Yaya declared.

Suddenly a monitor in the wall by Tomoyo's bed flipped on, showing footage from the Miator stadium. It was clear that the duel between Tamao and Striker was about to begin.

"Guys… you go on and take care of the fragment." Jaden said to the group. "I have to go to the stadium and watch Striker's duel."

"We understand J." Jessie told him as he gave him a supportive pat on the shoulder. "I'll take care of the Leviathan."

"Yaya and I will help Jessie." Tsubomi chimed in.

"Shion and I can stay with Jane and Tomoyo." Chikaru added. "You just go worry about Striker."

"Thanks guys." Jaden said to the group before heading out the door.

"Hiyori and I will lead the way to the student council room." Mika said to Jessie.

"Fine by me." Jessie agreed.

* * *

Meanwhile at the stadium, Tamao and Striker had already gotten on stage. Jaden ran onto the stadium floor before any of the action had started.

"By the decision of the coin toss, Tamao will go first." Amane announced. "Let the duel… begin!"

With that, the life points of both duelists were set to 4000 and Tamao drew her first card. Meanwhile Hikari and Amane quickly got off the stage in case Tamao played The Seal of Orichalcos.

"First I summon Maiden of Macabre in Attack Mode!" Tamao announced. A blue-skinned woman with an ornate hairstyle wearing a kimono and carrying a scythe appeared on the field. "Next I set one card and end my turn!"

"One way or another I'm taking you down!" Striker declared as he drew his first card.

"My, you seem a bit angry." Tamao commented. "Did I do something to upset you?"

"You took out Clive's soul and left his body as a piece of meat!" Striker angrily stated.

"Oh that's right, my last opponent was friend of yours." Tamao realized. "I'm terribly sorry things happened like that, but it's just how things worked out. But don't worry, you'll be joining your friend soon enough."

"Like hell!" Striker declared. "For my first move I play the Field Spell, Gaia Power!"

The area around the battlefield transformed into a lush green forest with trees tall enough to block out the sun.

"From what I could tell from your duel with Clive, you need that weird Field Spell of yours for your strategy, so I'm going to stop you from playing it by activating Field Barrier!" Striker announced. "This card prevents a Field Spell from being destroyed or replaced by another Field Spell!"

"How pathetic, I activate my Trap, Orichalcos Jamming Spell!" Tamao announced. "By discarding one card, I negate the activation of your Field Barrier and activate The Seal of Orichalcos from my deck!"

With a sudden gust of wind, the forest surrounding the battlefield disappeared and was replaced by The Seal of Orichalcos. Tamao's eyes started glowing bright green. At the same time, the Maiden of Macabre's eyes began glowing red, and a smaller version of the seal appeared on her forehead.

"I really must thank you for that last move." Tamao said with an innocent smile. "It turned out that the seal was buried deep at the bottom of my deck, so playing that card actually really helped me."

"I summon Gamma the Magnet Warrior in Defense Mode and end my turn!" Striker announced in an annoyed tone.

Appearing on the field in a crouched position was a pink robotic looking monster with large wings and an S on his chest.

"Striker is playing pretty recklessly." Yubel commented as she appeared next to Jaden on the sidelines. "He's usually more laidback."

"He's angry at Tamao for what happened to Clive." Jaden pointed out.

"Yes, and Tamao is doing a good job of egging him on." Yubel agreed. "If Striker keeps dueling the way he is now, he'll lose in a big way."

* * *

Meanwhile, Mika and Hiyori were leading Jessie, Yaya, and Tsubomi to the student council room.

"So why are you two helping us now?" Yaya asked the two former members of the Four Witches.

"Look, after Hoyori and I lost to your friends, we've kinda been rethinking a few things." Mika answered bluntly. "Besides, Tamao trying to kill Jane and Tomoyo really crossed a line."

"You didn't seem real bothered by the fact that Tamao was planning to destroy the world." Tsubomi pointed out.

"Yeah well… we didn't think that part out too much I guess." Mika replied.

"It seems than neither Mika or myself fully grasped the reality of what it would take for Lady Tamao to achieve her goals." Hiyori cut in. "We were all blinded by the promise of the utopia she was planning to create."

At last the five had reached the doorway to the student council room. Within moments they had entered the room itself, but right away something troubled both Mika and Hiyori.

"What's wrong?" Jessie asked after seeing the duo's worried expressions.

"It's gone!" Mika exclaimed. "The tank with the fragment is gone! Tamao must've moved it."

"The thing's small enough to be moved?" Yaya asked.

"It was built to be small enough to be transferred to another location in case of discovery." Hiyori explained. "Lady Tamao must've moved it before after she expelled us from the council."

"Okay, so where could she have moved it to?" Jessie asked.

"It could be anywhere." Hiyori answered. "And at this point trying to find the tank would be a useless effort. If my calculations are correct, Lady Tamao will soon be able to resurrect the Leviathan after she takes the soul of her current opponent in the tournament. So unless she loses, the world may be doomed."

* * *

Back in the duel, Tamao had already drawn her next card.

"First I activate Pot of Greed and draw two more cards!" Tamao announced. "Then I summon Orichalcos Mage in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the field was a short hooded wizard in green robes and blue armor. His face was impossible to see, but his eyes flashed bright red as soon as he appeared.

"My Orichalcos Mage gains 500 ATK for each Spell card in my Graveyard." Tamao explained. "Right now there are two, Mage Power, which I discarded to activate Orichalcos Jamming Spell, and Pot of Greed. Both these cards give my mage 1000 extra ATK points. That combined with the 500-point boost from the seal means that the ATK of my mage is 2300. Now then Maiden of Macabre, destroy Gamma with Reaper Scythe!"

The blue-skinned maiden charged forward and slashed Gamma in two with her scythe. Striker was left wide open.

"Orichalcos Mage, attack Striker directly!" Tamao commanded. "Dark Seal Spell!"

Green lightning shot up from the seal into the orb on the mage's staff, and the mage fired that energy at Striker. The attack knocked Striker against the invisible wall of the seal and reduced his life points to 1700.

"I'll set one card on the field and end my turn." Tamao announced. Striker got back to his feet and drew his next card.

"You can summon all the powerhouse monsters you want, I'll still beat you!" Striker declared.

"And what do you hope to accomplish by beating me?" Tamao asked.

"If I win, there's a chance that Clive's soul will be set free." Striker explained.

"Oh, I see." Tamao chuckled. "You silly boy, defeating me will only ensure that your friend's soul is trapped forever."

"What do you mean?" Striker demanded.

"The Seal of Orichalcos traps the soul of whoever loses the duel, and I am no exception." Tamao told him. "Meaning if you win, my soul will be trapped, and I'm the only one who can free your friend."

"You're lying!" Striker shouted. "You're just saying that to try and make me forfeit!"

"Believe what you want." Tamao told him. "In the end I don't think it will matter."

"I discard one card and activate Lightning Vortex!" Striker angrily announced. "This destroys all of the monsters on your side of the field!"

Several lightning bolts spiraled down from above and obliterated both of Tamao's monsters. It seemed that Tamao was left wide open.

"Now I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior!" Striker announced. Appearing on the field was a yellow robotic warrior with the halves of a horseshoe magnet for horns. "Beta, attack Tamao directly!"

"I activate my Trap, Magic Cylinder!" Tamao announced. "This redirects Beta's attack right back at you!"

Two large purple tubes suddenly appeared in front of Tamao. Beta entered the tube on the left and emerged from the tube on the right, causing him to charge at Striker. Beta's attack hit and reduced Striker's life points to zero. The seal then began to shrink around Striker, and when it had gotten small enough a pillar of green light shot into the air. Striker's soulless husk fell to the ground face first. Amane reluctantly declared Tamao the winner. Jaden meanwhile ran up on stage to check on Striker, but it was obvious that there was nothing he could do. He then turned to glare at Tamao.

"See you in the final match." Tamao said before walking off stage.

* * *

A bit later, Striker was taken to the Miator infirmary, but of course there was nothing the doctors could do for him. Jaden was left alone with Striker after Jessie had informed him about Tamao moving the fragment of the Leveiathan. All Jaden could think about was all the havoc Tamao and the Orichacos had brought to the island, and he knew he needed to put a stop to it. He then picked up Striker's deck and took out a card, placing that card in his own deck.

"I swear to you Striker, I will stop Tamao!" Jaden declared to Striker's soulless body. "And then I'll find a way to free you, Clive, and anyone else Tamao may have captured!"

With that, Jaden headed out to prepare for the final duel.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tamao returned to her room where she was holding the device containing the Leviathan fragment. She held up The Seal of Orichalcos card, which contained Striker's soul. A light flew from the card to a panel on the top part of the device, leaving the seal once again bare. Meanwhile Striker's picture became engraved in the panel. After that, Tamao took the four Orichalcos Ritual monsters and their Ritual Spells from her pocket and presented them to the device.

"Now Great Leviathan, take these four creatures created by darkness and use their energy to make yourself whole!" Tamao said to the device.

The eight cards suddenly burst into black flames, which went into the device. The fragment of the Leviathan began to glow bright green, and the glass container it was in suddenly shattered with a brilliant flash. When the light cleared, a card depicting a mechanical-looking sea serpent hovered within the broken device. Tamao reached out and took the card.

"At last, The Great Leviathan has been revived." Tamao said to herself. "First I will use it to destroy Jaden Yuki, and then I will finally destroy this unfair world!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** My one concern is that I may have rushed this chapter a little bit to get to the final chapters, but I think it turned out pretty well. I had actually planned for Mika and Hiyori to defect from Tamao later in the story, but I decided it would make more sense to move that part up.

In the next chapter the duel you've all been waiting for beings, Jaden vs. Tamao

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	27. Supreme King vs Dark Queen

**Author's Note:** I deeply apologize for leaving this story hanging so close to the climax. The long story short is that something happened a few months ago that made me want to take a break from anything related to Yu-Gi-Oh!, which unfortunately included this story. Plus I ended up working on this other huge project that's still in progress. Now I know it's not uncommon for authors on this site to not update their work for months at a time. But I still feel a little bad about it, especially since this is the second time I've put this story on hold. Anyway, I finally felt like doing more work on this story, so we now begin the epic final duel between Jaden and Tamao.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 26: Supreme King vs. Dark Queen

Only an hour had passed since Tamao's duel with Striker, and the stadium was once again packed with the students and faculty of Astraea Island. But the crowed was completely silent due to sort of tension hanging in the air. There were little who knew the fully story of what was going on behind the scenes of the tournament, but many could tell that there was something very strange going on. Everyone knew that Clive and Striker had ended up in a coma after losing to Tamao, and they could not deny the strangeness of Jane's duels with Chikaru and Jaden. Already, Jessie, Yaya, Tsubomi, Chikaru, and Shion had gathered to watch the duel from the sidelines, and Hikari and Amane soon stepped up on stage.

"Welcome everyone to the final duel of the Astraea Star Cup Tournament." Amane said into the microphone. "Will Jaden Yuki and Tamao Suzumi take their places on stage please?"

Within moments Jaden emerged from the waiting room and walked onto the stadium platform. Tamao walked onto the stage moments later. Jaden glared at Tamao as the two of them took their places.

"You're pretty serious." Tamao commented with an arrogant smile. "You should relax and try to have fun. I know I certainly would."

"I'm taking you down!" Jaden declared.

"By the decision of the coin toss, Tamao will go first." Amane announced. "Let the duel… begin!"

Hikari and Amane quickly got off the stage as the life points of the duelists were set to 4000. The duel began after Tamao drew her first card.

"First I discard Orichalcos Seal Master to add The Seal of Orichalcos to my hand." Tamao announced. "And now I play The Seal of Orichalcos!"

The glowing outer ring of the seal descended down from the sky and surrounded the two duelists. The line of the hexagram formed, completing the seal.

"Now I discard a card from my hand to summon Orichalcos Seal Master to the field in attack Mode!" Tamao announced.

Appearing on the field in front of Tamao was a man with long light-blue hair, pale skin, and green eyes. He was wearing black robes and white chest and shoulder armor. In his right hand he carried a sort of black scepter with a large Orichalcos green orb on the end, and atop his head he wore a white conical hat. Jaden thought that Tamao's monster resembled King Dartz, who he had seen before in his dream vision of the battle of Atlantis.

"With the seal in play, my Orichalcos Seal Master has 2100 ATK points." Tamao revealed. "Not that it matters since I can't attack this turn. I'll end things for now by setting two cards on the field."

"My move!" Jaden announced as he drew his first card. "First I play Polymerization and fuse Burstinatrix and Clayman in my hand to summon Elemental Hero Rampart Blaster in Defense Mode!"

The two heroes appeared momentarily on the field before merging into the armored version of Burstinatrix. Rampart Blaster kneeled down and raised her shield.

"Next I play Miracle Fusion and remove Clayman and Burstinatrix in the Graveyard to summon Elemental Hero Gaia!" Jaden announced.

Dropping down onto the field was a massive warrior covered in dark-brown armor. The armor around his forearms was extreamly thick, giving one the impression that he had giant fists, and parts of the armor were highlighted in gold hand had red gemstones embedded in them.

"Now for Gaia's effect!" Jaden announced. "When Gaia is summoned to the field I can cut the ATK of an opponent's monster in half until the end of the turn and add that same amount to Gaia's ATK points. And the monster I choose for this effect is Orichalcos Seal Master!"

Gaia slammed his fists into the ground, creating a path of broken earth between himself and the Seal Master. Green energy began to flow out of the Seal Master and down the path into Gaia.

"Impressive." Tamao commented.

"I'm not done yet!" Jaden announced. "Now I play Parallel Word Fusion and return Burstinatrix and Clayman to the Graveyard to summon Elemental Hero Nova Master!"

Appearing on the field next to Rampart Blaster and Gaia was a warrior with a flowing red cape and fiery colored armor. Many members of the audience murmured in amazement at Jaden's move.

"Wow, I can't believe Jaden used the same two monsters to create three different fusions!" Tsubomi exclaimed sounding very impressed. "If Jaden's attack get through he'll win!"

"It's too easy." Chikaru said grimly. "Tamao still has those two facedown cards on the field. I think she wants Jaden to attack."

"I attack directly using Rampart Blaster's effect!" Jaden announced. "Rampart Shot!"

Rampart Blaster raised her cannon arm and fired an energy blast. In that instant Tamao smirked.

"I activate my Traps, Mirror Force and Dark Mirror Force!" Tamao announced. "Mirror Force destroys all of your attack position monsters, while Dark Mirror Force destroys all your defense position monsters and removes them from play."

The energy blast from Rampart Blaster's cannon suddenly hit an invisible barrier that had appeared before Orichalcos Seal Master and bounced back to Jaden's side of the field. NoAll three of Jaden's monsters were destroyed in a massive explosion, leaving his field completely bare.

"Calm down, will ya?" Yubel told Jaden as she appeared next to him. "If you go at Tamao like that you'll lose!"

"Yeah, you're right." Jaden sighed quietly. "I lay down a facedown and end my turn!"

"My, you're rather worked up." Tamao commented as she drew her next card. "That was a bold move to heedlessly charge at me like that. It's that kind of mistake that cost your friend Striker his soul. Don't worry though; I don't to intend to finish you off as quickly I did him. With all the trouble you've caused me I want to have a little fun destroying you. For my first move I play Terraforming to add a Field Spell card to my hand."

"But you already have The Seal of Orichalcos on the field." Jaden pointed out.

"True, but you've yet to see the full power of the seal." Tamao revealed. "Now I play Orichalcos Deuterous!"

Another ring of ancient text suddenly appeared around the outside of the seal. It spun around for a moment until seeming to lock in place, creating another invisible barrier over the first one formed by the seal.

"What the heck is this?" Jaden asked in confusion.

"I suppose you could call it an upgrade, but I think it'd be more accurate to say that Deuterous is a second layer to the seal." Tamao explained. "In addition to the original effects of the seal, Orichalcos Deuterous gives me 500 additional life points for every monster on my field during the first Main Phase during each of my turns. Not only that I can now block any direct attack you send at me."

"No fair! This means that Tamao's life points will keep going up!" Tsubomi exclaimed.

"That looks like Tamao's strategy." Yaya observed. "She keeps raising her life points and at the same time wails on her opponent with powerful monsters."

"Now since I have The Seal of Orichalcos on the field, I can Special Summon in Defense Mode, Orichalcos Rejuvenator!" Tamao announced.

Appearing on the field sitting cross-legged was a figure in dark-blue robes and hood. On his face was a metallic gasmask with black hoses connected to a large metal tank on his back. The tank was connected to a metal chest plate, and on the top of the tank was a large green gemstone.

"That's the same monster Tamao used in her duel with Clive!" Jessie observed.

"Now, I attack directly with Orichalcos Seal Master!" Tamao announced. "Orichalcos Death Spell!"

From his wand the Seal Master fired a large ball of green light at Jaden. The blast hit Jaden in the chest and knocked him against the invisible barrier of the seal, reducing his life points to 1900.

"I'll set one card on the field and end my turn." Tamao announced. Jaden got back to his feet and drew his next card.

"First I play Pot of Greed and draw two more cards! Then I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart!" Jaden announced. The wilderness hero appeared on the field.

"You seem fond of that monster." Tamao observed. "I have no clue what you hope to accomplish by summoning him though."

"I'm not through yet! Now I play The Fang of Critias!" Jaden announced. Critias roared onto the field in his dragon form. "Now I combine Critias with the facedown I laid earlier, Striker's favorite card, Metalmorph!"

The large representation of Jaden's Trap card flew into Critias and triggered a transformation. Critias's wings vanished and his scales became like chrome. His body became more serpent-like and a pair of long whiskers grew from his snout.

"Say hello to Full Metal Dragon!" Jaden announced. "And now I activate Full Metal Dragon's effect and equip him to Wildheart!"

Full Metal Dragon suddenly turned into a sort of liquid metal and covered Wildheart's body. The metal morphed into a set of shining chrome armor, complete with a helmet that covered the top half of Wildheart's face and was styled in the head of Critias's original dragon form.

"Impressive." Tamao commented. "You couldn't use Metalmorph on Wildheart because of his effect, but you've corrected that little problem using Critias. Very clever."

"Wildheart gains half of Full Metal Dragon's ATK, making Wildheart's ATK 2700." Jaden explained. "Not only that, when Wildheart attacks a monster while equipped with Full Metal Dragon, it gains half that monster's ATK during the battle. Now Wildheart, attack Seal Master with Full Metal Fist!"

Wildheart jumped in the air and raised his fist to strike the Seal Master. As he did, the armor of its fist began to glow with a white light.

"Sorry, but I activate my Trap, Draining Shield!" Tamao announced. "Not only is your attack stopped, but I gain 2700 life points."

Second before Wildheart's fist could strike, the Seal Master raised his arm and on it appeared a silver shield. The Seal Master blocked Wildheart's fist with his shield, and Tamao's life points went up to 6700.

"And now the effect of my Rejuvenator kicks in." Tamao announced. "Whenever my life points increase, I gain 500 additional life points for each monster I have on the field."

A beam of green light came from the gemstone on the Rejuvenator's tank and hit Tamao. Tamao's life points rose up to 7700.

"I end my turn!" Jaden announced. Tamao drew her next card.

"With the beginning of my Main Phase, the effect of Orichalcos Deuterous kicks in and raises my life points by 1000." Tamao announced. "And I gain another thousand thanks to my Rejuvenator."

The seal flashed momentarily on the ground, and at the same time another beam of light flowed from the tank on the Rejuvenator's back at the same time. Tamao's life points then increased to 9700.

"Now, this duel would be more fun if we both had cards to use, so I play Card of Sanctity, letting us both drawn until we have six cards." Tamao announced. "Next I summon Orichalcos Strength Drainer in Attack Mode!"

Appearing on the field was a hunched-over grey-skinned humanoid figure with long arms wearing a black muscle shirt, black jeans, black leather gloves, and black combat boots. A black leather mask covered his head. There were red lenses over the eyeholes, and the mouth hole was zipped shut. Around his neck on a thick iron chain was a silver medallion with a large green gemstone. The moment the creature appeared a smaller version of the seal appeared on its forehead.

"Now I activate Strength Drainer's effect and cut the ATK of Wildheart in half." Tamao announced.

The mask-wearing creature stretched his arms forward. The stone of his medallion began to glow, and soon red energy was being pulled from Wildheart into the Strength Drainer's hands.

"That's not all of course." Tamao added. "With Orichalcos Deuterous on the field, I gain half of Wildheart's ATK as life points. Plus my Rejuvenator's effect kicks in and gives me 1500 more life points at the same time."

A green light then began to shine from the Strength Drainer's back and hit Tamao. While this was happening another beam of light went from the tank on the Rejuvenator's back and hit Tamao as well. Tamao's life points rose to 12250.

"Strength Drainer, destroy Wildheart!" Tamao commanded. "Life Force Extinguisher!"

The Strength Drainer raised its long arms forward and shot a ball of red light from his hands. The armor covering Wildheart shattered, leaving the wilderness hero unharmed. The attack reduced Jaden's life points to 850.

"When a monster equipped with Full Metal Dragon would be destroyed in battle, I can destroy Full Metal Dragon to protect it." Jaden explained.

"Well played, but pointless." Tamao pointed out. "Wildheart is still going to be destroyed, and you'll be out of life points. Seal Master, finish this duel with Orichalcos Death Spell!"

The Seal Master raised his wand and fired off another blast. But at the last second Full Metal Dragon reappeared on the field and blocked the attack, shattering in an explosion.

"What?" a shocked Tamao exclaimed.

"If one of my monsters is attacked while Full Metal Dragon is in the Graveyard, I can remove it to negate the attack." Jaden explained.

"I should've known it wouldn't be that easy." Tamao said in an annoyed tone. "No matter, I set one card on the field and end my turn!"

"How is Jaden going to get out of this?" a worried Tsubomi asked on the sidelines.

"No clue, but I know J. will figure a way out!" Jessie assured her.

"He had better soon." Chikaru told them. "Because if this duel goes on for too long, Tamao will become too strong to stop."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Full Metal Dragon's effect to negate an attack was sort of a last minute addition because I realized I had made a mistake when writing the original duel. It'll probably be a couple days before I update this story again, but I'm going to try and have it finished soon.

In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	28. A World Without Love

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 27: A World Without Love

The situation did not look good for Jaden in his current duel with Tamao. He had managed to save himself from defeat with the help of Full Metal Dragon, but he had only a small amount of life points left. Meanwhile, Tamao's life points were beginning to skyrocket thanks to Orichalcos Deuterous and Orichalcos Rejuvenator. What was worse though was that the duel had only just begun and Jaden had a feeling that Tamao had something far worse waiting in her deck. But as Jaden drew his next card he hoped for something that could end the duel quickly.

"I play Polymerization!" Jaden announced. "I fuse Wildheart on the field with Neo-Spacian Dark Panther to summon Elemental Hero Escuridao!"

Appearing momentarily on the field was a large black panther with a golden collar and a black cape. Both Dark Panther and Wildheart flew up into the fusion vortex that had appeared above the field. Emerging from the vortex moments later was a slender warrior in pitch-black armor. Two long forked and jagged blades jutted out from the warrior's back. In place of his right hand, the warrior had a weapon with three jagged blades. An unearthly blue aura emanated from this dark warrior.

"Not only does Escuridao have 2500 ATK, but he gains 100 extra ATK for every Elemental Hero in my Graveyard." Jaden explained. "Right now I have five heroes in my Graveyard, making Escuridao's ATK 3000. Escuridao, attack Orchichaclos Strength Drainer with Dark Diffusion!"

Escuridao shot a beam of blue energy from the blade weapon on its right arm at the Strength Drainer. The twisted masked Spellcaster was destroyed in the resulting explosion and Tamao's life points dropped to 11950, but when the smoke cleared a new monster was standing in his place. It was a woman with long blue hair and light green eyes. She wore a flowing blue dress and a matching cape with a long collar. On her head was a blue conical hat and around her neck was an amulet with the symbol of the Orichalcos on it. In her right hand the woman carried a long silver staff with a green orb on top.

"I'm sure you remember my Orichalcos Witch from my duel with your friend Clive." Tamao reminded him. "I can summon her when one of my Spellcaster monsters is destroyed. Not only that, but she destroys all other monster on the field when she appears."

The witch raised her staff in the air, and from the orb at the top came an explosion of green light. Escuridao, along with the Seal Master and the Rejuvenator, were all vaporized.

"Damn that Tamao!" Shion angrily shouted on the sidelines. "Just when Jaden had turned things around again she comes back with a stronger monster!"

"It's not all bad though." Chikaru pointed out. "At least that Orichalcos Rejuvenator is gone, which means she won't be able to increase her life points as much as before."

"It's still your move." Tamao pointed out to Jaden back in the duel.

"I lay down a facedown and end my turn!" Jaden announced. Tamao drew her next card.

"First of all, Orichalcos Deuterous gives me 500 extra life points." Tamao announced. The seal flashed again and Tamao's life points rose to 12450. "Now then, it's probably pointless at this point, but with a duelist like you I feel I should play it safe. I play the Field Spell, Orichalcos Tritos!"

A third ring of ancient text suddenly appeared around the seal. It spun around for a few moments before locking in place.

"Orichalcos Tritos gains the original effects of The Seal of Orichalcos and Orichalcos Deuterous." Tamao explained. "But in addition to that it also allows me to prevent my monsters from being destroyed by an effect. Just in case that facedown of yours is something meant to destroy my witch."

"Now what's Jaden supposed to do?" Tsubomi asked from the sidelines with a worried expression.

"I think now is a good time to activate the effect of my Oriclacos Witch." Tamao announced. "By removing a Spellcaster monster from my Graveyard I gain 2000 life points. So now I remove Orichalcos Strength Drainer."

The witch raised her staff in the air and shot forth a ball of green light. The ball hit the barrier of the seal and smaller sparkling green lights rained down onto the field. Tamao's life points rose again to 14450.

"Now my Orichalcos Witch, attack Jaden directly!" Tamao commanded. "Orichalcos Magic Blast!"

"I activate my Trap, and it's one you know pretty well, Draining Shield!" Jaden announced as the witch fired a large ball of green energy from her staff.

Jaden raided his duel disk arm and over his duel disk appeared a shield. The attack hit the shield and Jaden's life points rose to 3950.

"You never fail to impress me Jaden." Tamao chuckled. "Still, no matter how you try you will not defeat me. And when I'm through with you I'll finally remake this unfair world!"

"What do you mean by unfair?" Jaden asked.

"It's simple. I want to create a world without love, without friendship." Tamao explained. "All my life I've been alone, my parents never had time for me, every year I would be without a dorm mate, and I've never had too many friends here on the island. For a time I thought that had changed with Nagisa, but I was only fooling myself. In the end I was still alone, never finding love while those around me still did, including my so-called friends."

"So this is all because you're jealous of all your friends here on the island finding love?" Jaden asked sounding surprised.

"You're so small minded." Tamao laughed. "This goes far beyond me. The Orichalcos has shown me the truth, and that's that my situation is not unique. All around this world are people who've found love, who are surrounded by friends and family. But at the same time there are many more people who're completely alone. It's simply unfair that only a few aren't alone while there are many others who are. And that is what I will change."

"I see… now it all makes sense why you're doing this." Jaden observed with a sad expression. "But Tamao, no one in this world is ever truly alone, not even you. You have friends all around you, including me."

"You, a friend of mine?" Tamao laughed bitterly. "Please, you've been nothing but a nuisance to me! For one thing you've meddled in my relationship with Nagisa, though I guess I should thank you since you helped to show me how pointless that was. But since then you interfered with my plans and corrupted my student council. You claim to be my friend, but all you've done is get in my way!"

Jaden was about to debate that point, but he knew that Tamao was right to an extent. As he thought about it, his surroundings became dim until he was standing in darkness. Yubel suddenly appeared next to him.

"What's got you down all of a sudden?" Yubel asked.

"Tamao's right, I haven't been a real good friend to her." Jaden told her. "Even before this whole mess started. I interfered with her relationship with Nagisa and ended up helping to push Shizuma and Nagisa together. Not once did I consider how Tamao felt. This whole thing is my fault."

"Oh please, you knew that what Tamao had with Nagisa wasn't going to work out." Yubel reminded him. "You did the right thing back then, not just for Shizuma and Nagisa, but for Tamao too."

"Still, because of some of the things I did Tamao ended up alone again." Jaden pointed out. "And because of that she's come up with this twisted plan of hers."

"Hey! First of all, Shizuma and Nagisa got together on their own, you just helped them along a little." Yubel argued. "Second, it's because of that Orichalcos ring of hers that Tamao has started this whole plan to make a world without love. You can't blame yourself for any of this."

"Yubel is right Jaden Yuki." Timaeus said as he, Critias, and Hermos walked out of the darkness in their knight forms. "The Orichalcos twists the minds of all those who wield it, just as it did with King Dartz and the Nameless Pharaoh. It is the Orichalcos that is the true enemy in this fight."

"When you think about it, Tamao isn't all that different from how you were the Supreme King." Yubel pointed out to Jaden. "She's been taken over by her own inner darkness like you were."

"Yeah, and my friends fought to help bring me out of that darkness." Jaden recalled as he remembered how his friends, Jim Cook and Axel Brodie sacrificed themselves to free Jaden from his own evil. "Now's my chance to do the same for Tamao, and to destroy the Orichalcos once and for all!"

"Then let us help you in your battle Jaden Yuki." Hermos said as he, Timaeus, and Critias held out their hands over each other. "We would be honored to fight at your side."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Jaden said with a smile as he put his hand over those of the three knights. In a flash of white light, Jaden was back in the duel and had already drawn his next card.

"It's about time you started your turn." Tamao said with a hint of annoyance in her voice.

"Tamao, I'm going to win this duel and save you from yourself!" Jaden declared.

"You're going to what?" Tamao asked with a raised eyebrow.

"The Orichalcos has twisted your mind and make you think you don't have anyone who cares about you. But you have friends all around you." Jaden told her.

"Don't be ridiculous. The Orichalcos has shown me the truth about the world." Tamao maintained.

"You're wrong! The Orichalcos has only used your loneliness to twist your view of the world so it can bring destruction!" Jaden insisted. "And I'm going to destroy it to save you and free the souls of Striker, Clive, and anyone else you've trapped!"

"And just how do you plan to do that?" Tamao scoffed.

"Well for starters I'm going to activate Swing of Memories and summon Burstinatrix back to the field!" Jaden announced. The female hero of flames reappeared on the battlefield. "Next I'm going to play another Polymerizatuon and fuse Burstinatrix with Avian in my hand to summon Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!"

Avian momentarily appeared on the field as he and Burstiatix flew into the fusion vortex created by Polymerization. Within moments Flame Wingman emerged from the vortex.

"I don't see what good summoning that monster will do." Tamao told him.

"Now I play the card, Legend of Heart!" Jaden announced. "First I pay 1000 life points and tribute Flame Wingman. Then by removing The Eye of Timaeus, The Fang of Critias, and The Claw of Hermos, I summon to the field, Legendary Knight Timaeus, Legendary Knight Critias, and Legendary Knight Hermos!"

After Flame Wingman had shattered into triangles of gold light, Timaeus, Critias, and Hermos appeared in their dragon forms and flew up into the air, followed by three swords. A massive bolt of lightning hit the ground and from it emerged the three knights. Timaues, Critias, and Hermos raised their swords and swung them to the ground, causing The Seal of Orichalcos to shatter like glass. The audience and those on the sidelines looked in awe at the appearance of the three knights.

"Wow, not only did Jaden summon three powerful monsters, but he destroyed that Field Spell of Tamao's too!" Tusbomi happily exclaimed.

"Yeah, but what I don't get is why he sacrificed Flame Wingman when he could've just sacrificed Burstinatrix or Avian." Yaya pointed out.

"Unless Jaden needs Flame Wingman in the Graveyard for something else." Chikaru pointed out.

"What happened to the seal?" Tamao demanded back in the duel.

"The seal cannot exist in our presence, witch!" Timaeus proclaimed.

"I see, so it was destroyed when Legend of Heart summoned you three." Tamao observed. "Well it doesn't matter anyway. I don't need the seal to defeat you, not when I have my ultimate card."

"You mean The Great Leviathan, don't you?" Jaden guessed. "I had a feeling you've been planning to summon that monster from the start."

"Well I was thinking that I would beat you before it came to that." Tamao admitted. "But it seems I once again underestimated you."

"You're not gonna get the chance to summon it!" Jaden declared.

"I don't see how you can stop me. Right now all of our monsters have 2800 ATK points." Tamao pointed out. "I suppose you could take out my witch in a suicide attack, but even if you did the combined attack of your other two knights wouldn't be enough to finish me off."

"There won't be a suicide attack, because I activate the effect of Hermos!" Jaden announced. "By removing an effect monster from my Graveyard, Hermos gains the effect of that monster until the end of the turn! And the monster I choose to remove is Elemental Hero Escuridao!"

Hermos raised his sword, and the blade began to glow with a blue light. A ghostly image of Escuridao appeared and flew into Hermos. Hermos then began to glow with an unearthly blue aura.

"Now Hermos gains 100 ATK for each hero in my Graveyard!" Jaden explained. "This means that for this turn his ATK is 3500! Hermos, attack Orichalcos Witch!"

"Sword of Courage!" Hermos cried as he slashed the Orichalcos Witch in half.

With the attack there was an explosion and Tamao's life points dropped down to 13750. When the smoke cleared however, three new monsters stood on Tamao's side of the field. They were shadowy creatures with red eyes, and each one was wearing armor identical to each of the three knights. The one wearing Timaeus's armor had only one eye as if the other was scared shut, though it was on the opposite side.

"What sorcery is this?" Critias demanded to know.

"I activated the Trap I set a few turns ago, Orichalcos Dark Mirror." Tamao explained. "When my witch was destroyed in battle I was able to summon a Dark Reflection Token for each one of my opponent's monsters. And for each token I'm able to select one enemy monster and give that token the monster's ATK and DEF. It seems that once again we've reached a stalemate."

"I end my turn then!" Jaden announced. Tamao drew her next card with a sinister smile on her face.

"I guess I should thank you for summoning your friends the knights Jaden." Tamao told him. "Because you did I have everything I need for my next move."

"What do you mean?" Jaden asked as he narrowed his eyes.

"My ultimate monster needs three tributes to summon, and right now I have three Dark Reflection Tokens because of your knights." Tamao explained. "So now I sacrifice my three tokens to summon… Leviathan Omaga!"

The three twisted mirror images of the knights shattered and a pillar of black energy shot up into the air. The blast was so powerful that it physically blew the roof off the stadium. Thankfully none of the debris fell on the audience. The sky above grew thick with storm clouds and the wind suddenly picked up. Bursting forth from the sky was a massive black sea serpent. Parts of its body were covered in shining black metal. One of its dorsal fins looked to be made completely out of metal. All of the creature's jaw was metallic. It had a mane of grey hair, and on top of its snout was a large cannon with hoses reaching from the cannon's sides to the topside of the creature's neck.

"Is that The Great Leviathan?" Jaden asked with a look of horror.

"It has taken a different form from before!" Timaeus confirmed. "It's as if its become a machine!"

"Well the Leveiathan was resurrected using modern technology rather than simple magic." Tamao pointed out. "But because of that it's far stronger than it was in the past. And now that my pet has been summoned your end is near, as is the end of this unfair world!"

* * *

**Author's Note:** Originally Jaden's conversation with Yubel and the knights was going to happen after he had gotten knocked out from an attack. But the way I had written the duel caused me to change things. I've ended up having to change quite a few things to get the ending I want. I've even had to alter the effects of some of the cards I made up for this story. A lot of it is because I made a few miscalculations when writing the duel itself. Writing a duel isn't easy, believe me.

Anyway, I had decided from the beginning that The Great Leviathan would be brought back as a cyborg. For one thing the Leviathan was never shown as an actual card in the anime, and after the beating it took from Atem and the three Egyptian Gods it just seemed to make sense. Plus it's a little more original. I mean I don't want this story to be just a replay of the anime.

Please review and let me know what you think.


	29. Heroes Unite! The Birth of Trinity Neos!

**Author's Note:** Well, here it is, the thrilling conclusion to Jaden and Tamao's duel, but this story isn't quite over yet. After this chapter there will be an epilogue to wrap things up.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Chapter 28: Heroes Unite! The Birth of Trinity Neos!

In an instant the situation in Jaden's duel with Tamao had gotten as bad as it could possibly get. Though Jaden had summoned the three Legendary Knights, immediately retaliated by summoning the resurrected form of The Great Leviathan, Leviathan Omega. The summoning of the cybernetic terror had literally blown the roof off the stadium. Remarkable no one had been hurt by the collapse of the roof, but everyone who was watching the duel looked on in terror. And what was worse was that Tamao had yet to begin her attack.

"As you can see, Leviathan Omega has 5000 ATK, but it's the effect of my Levitathan that you should really worry about." Tamao revealed. "I activate that effect now by discarding one card, and with that the ATK of all my opponent's monsters is halved until the end of the turn. Not only that, but Leviathan also gains the combined amount of the ATK points it just drained."

The Leviathan gave out a mechanized roar, and suddenly purple colored energy began to drain from the three knights into the Leviathan's open mouth. Timaeus, Critias, and Hermos all fell to one knee, breathing heavily as they held themselves up with their swords.

"Oh no! Now Leviathan Omega has 9200 ATK!" Tsubomi exclaimed. "There's no way Jaden can survive an attack like that!"

"Time to put an end to this! Leviathan Omega, attack Critias with Omega Death Cannon!" Tamao commanded.

Everyone watching the duel averted their gaze as the cannon on the Leviathan's head began to charge. A beam of black energy burst forth from the barrel of the cannon moments latter.

"Bad move! I activate Critias's effect!" Jaden quickly announced. "By removing a Trap card from my Graveyard I can activate its effect, and the card I remove is Draining Shield!"

Critias raised his sword, and as he did the blade began to glow with a blue light. The blast from the Leviathan's cannon suddenly began to be sucked in by the sword. After several moments the attack finally ended and Jaden's life points rose to 13150.

"Now you're starting to annoy me." Tamao said with irritation in her voice. "Fine, I'll set one card on the field and end my turn! And with that the attack of all our monsters return to normal."

The three knights glowed briefly with a green aura before getting back to their feet. Meanwhile Jaden drew his next card.

"I'm ending this now Tamao! First I activate the Spell card, Ancient Rules! This let's me summon Elemental Hero Neos!" Jaden announced. The white hero of space appeared on the field.

"I don't see what good that monster will do." Tamao told him.

"Neos has the hidden power to combine with any monster!" Jaden explained. "So now I activate the effect of Timaeus and remove Polymerization to activate its effect! And I use that effect to combine Neos with the Legendary Knights!"

Timaeus raised his sword and the blade began to glow with a blue light. A fusion vortex then appeared in the air and Neos flew into it.

"We put out faith in the power of Neos!" Timaeus proclaimed as he, Critias, and Hermos flew into the vortex after Neos.

In moments there was an explosion of gold light. The light faded to reveal Neos in a new form. On his chest he wore golden armor connected to gold shoulder plates. On the chest of the armor surrounding the blue orb that was normally present on Neos were three inverted triangles, with the top left colored green to represent Timaeus, the top right colored purple to represent Critias, and the bottom colored orange to represent Hermos. On his head Neos wore a golden helmet similar to the ones worn by the three knights, only it had a three-pointed crest on the front. Golden armor also adorned Neos's waist, and around his wrists and ankles were golden bands. In his right hand Noes carried a sword with a golden handle, and in his left a shield formed in the shape of a dragon's head. On Neos's back was a flowing red cape.

"Say hello to Trinity Neos!" Jaden announced.

"4500 ATK, impressive." Tamao commented. "But it's not quite enough to defeat the Leviathan."

"Don't be so sure! I activate the first effect of Trinity Neos and cut the ATK of Leviathan Omega in half!" Jaden announced.

The green triangle on Trinity Neos's armor glowed, and his sword began to glow with a green light. With a swing of his sword Trinity Neos sent a blade of green energy at the Leviathan, causing it to cry out.

"Now I activate the second effect of Trinity Neos!" Jaden announced. "By removing an effect monster from the Graveyard, Trinity Neos gains that card's effect until the end of the turn! And the monster I remove is Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!"

The orange triangle on Trinity Neos's chest armor glowed. A ghostly image of Flame Wingman appeared and flew into Trinity Neos's back.

"Now Trinity Neos, attack Leviathan Omega with Sword of Destiny!" Jaden commanded.

Trinity Neos flew at the Leviathan as the blade of his sword began to glow with a gold light. With a swing of his sword he sent a golden blade of energy at the cybernetic terror.

"Nice try, but I activate my Trap, Sakuretsu Armor!" Tamao announced. "Now your champion knight is destroyed!"

"I don't think so! Because now I activate the third effect of Trinity Neos and negate the effect of Sakuratsu Armor!" Jaden announced.

The purple triangle on Trinity Neo's chest armor and his shield flashed with a purple light. In an instant the large representation of Tamao's Trap card shattered. At the same time the blade of gold light split Leviathan Omega down the middle. It kept going until it hit Tamao, almost knocking her off the stage. Her life points fell to 9250.

"Because Trinity Neos has Flame Wingman's effect, you take damage equal to the difference in his ATK and the ATK of Leviathan Omega." Jaden reminded Tamao.

"Well played." Tamao said with a sinister smirk as she recovered from the attack. "But I'm afraid my Leviathan has one more surprise. When it's destroyed it takes all other monsters on the field with it."

The two halves of the Leviathan began to crackle with electricity. Suddenly both halves exploded creating a massive cloud of black smoke.

"You may have taken out my Leviathan, but this duel is far from over." Tamao boasted. Just as she did however, Neos flew out of the cloud of smoke in his original form with the three knights following close behind. "WHAT?"

"Trinity Neos had one more effect up his sleeve too." Jaden revealed. "You see if he's destroyed by the effect of an opponent's monster I can summon the original Neos back to the field, along with Timaeus, Critias, and Hermos! Now let's end this! Timaeus, attack Tamao directly!"

"Sword of Justice!" Timaeus cried as he flew at Tamao's right and slashed her with his sword. Tamao cried out and her life points dropped to 6450.

"You're up next Critias! Attack Tamao directly!" Jaden commanded.

"Sword of Wisdom!" Critias called out as he came at Tamao from behind and slashed her. The attack not only dropped Tamao's life points to 3650, but also cut the white bow holding her hair in place.

"We're not done yet! Hermos, attack Tamao directly!" Jaden commanded.

"Sword of Courage!" Hermos cried out as he came at Tamao from the front and slashed her. Tamao cried out and her life points fell to a mere 850.

"End this Neos!" Jaden commanded. "Attack with Wrath of Neos!"

Neos flew at Tamao with his fist raised. Out of fear Tamao screamed and raised her hand with the Orichalcos Stone ring to protect herself. Neos's fist made contact with the ring, causing it to crack and explode in a flash of green light. The force of the explosion blew Tamao right off the stage. At the same time her life points had dropped to zero, causing the monsters left on the field to vanish. From the remains of the ring came a shadowy serpent-like creature that shrieked before exploding. Several cards that had fallen from Tamao's duel disk burst into black flames and burned away.

* * *

Meanwhile back in Tamao's room at the dorms, the souls of the duelist that Tamao had captured flew from the device used to revive the Leviathan flew off into their respective bodies. Moments later both Clive and Striker woke up in the Miator infirmary.

"What the hell happened?" Striker said as he sat up.

"That you Striker?" Clive asked from the bed on Striker's right.

"Clive? Are you really awake?" Striker asked sounding surprised and overjoyed.

"Of course I am!" Clive confirmed as if the fact was obvious. "Though I've no clue what happened to me."

"So you guys are awake." A voice suddenly said. Striker and Clive turned to see that it was Mika. Hiyori was standing there next to her.

"What're you guys doing here?" Striker asked as he narrowed his eyes in suspicion at the two girls.

"Relax, we're not your enemies anymore." Mika told him. "In fact the reason you guys are awake is because your side won."

"You mean the Fusion Master beat Tamao?" Clive asked.

"I think that should be obvious." Hiyori cut in. "And somehow by winning, Jaden has set free all of the souls that Lady Tamao had captured."

"Hey! What's going on here?" a gruff voice demanded from behind a hospital curtain in the room. Both Striker and Clive recognized the voice as that of Dirk Peters. "Why the hell am I cuffed to this bed? When I get my hands on whoever the hell did this they're gonna be in a body cast!"

"Excuse me a sec." Mika said with an irritated expression before going behind the curtain.

"Shut the hell up!" Mika yelled before punching out Dirk.

* * *

Back at the stadium, Jaden watched as the medics came out to tend to Tamao. Everyone who had been watching the duel had remained silent. At last, Hikari and Amane came back on stage.

"Okay, well that was a pretty nerve wracking duel we had there. But at last we have a winner!" Amane announced into the microphone. "The winner and champion of the Astraea Star Cup is Jaden Yuki!"

With this proclamation the crowd erupted in cheers and applause. Though Jaden was not paying much attention to that. His attention was more focused on Tamao, and he continued to watch as the medics carted her away.

"Relax, I'm sure Tamao will be fine." Yubel assured him as she appeared.

"I hope so." Jaden told her.

"You have done well Jaden Yuki." Timaues said after he, Critias, and Hermos reappeared in their knight forms. "We thank you for your help in slaying the Leviathan and destroying the Orichalcos once and for all."

"I should be thanking you guys. I couldn't have done any of this without your help." Jaden pointed out.

"It was our honor to fight at your side." Critias told him. "You are truly a powerful warrior."

"And now we must take our leave." Hermos cut in. "With the Leviathan and the Orichalcos no more we must go to continue protecting our realm."

"It was a blast meeting you guys." Jaden said as he gave them a thumbs-up.

"As it was for us. Live well, Jaden Yuki." Timaeus said before he and his brothers faded into thin air.

* * *

The next day the dust of the tournament had begun to settle on the island. The night before, there was a banquet to celebrate Jaden's victory. During which he was awarded a silver trophy and a check for a rather large sum of money. That morning, Jaden, Jessie, Stirker, and Clive had gather down at the island's pier as the boat to take the visiting duelists from the island had come.

"So you're really going to stay here on the island?" Jessie asked Jaden.

"Only for a few days to make sure Tamao is okay." Jaden answered.

"I still don't see why you'd waste your time after all the trouble she caused." Striker said bitterly.

"Easy now Striker. Like the Fusion Master told us, it was all because of that weird magic rock of hers." Clive pointed out.

"Besides, Tamao doesn't remember anything she did while using the Orichalcos." Jaden revealed. "In fact she doesn't remember anything that's happened to her in the last two years."

"Is it because the Orichalcos was destroyed?" Jessie asked.

"That might be part of it, but the doctors who examined Tamao after the duel think that blow to the head she took gave her some kind of amnesia." Jaden answered. "Either way though, Tamao's not the same girl who tried to destroy the world."

"I still don't think I can forgive her for what happened, but whatever." Striker relented. "Good luck Jaden."

"You too guys." Jaden said as he shook Striker's hand. "I hope I'll se you guys again."

"You can count on it." Jessie assured him.

With that, the three duelists got aboard the boat. Jaden watched and waved at them on deck as the boat pulled away from the dock, and in moments they were gone.

"So you're really going to stay here longer just for Tamao's sake?" Yubel inquired as she appeared next to Jaden.

"Tamao really needs friends right now, and up until now I haven't been a very good one." Jaden pointed out. "Back then when I was on this island searching for the Wicked Gods I became more concerned about Shizuma and Nagisa than Tamao. I know that the Orichalcos is to blame for what happened after, but I can't help but feel that a little of this is my fault."

"You never change, do you?" Yubel sighed as she shook her head.

"Would you want me to?" Jaden asked.

"No, I don't think so." Yubel replied honestly.

"Well, we should get going. Chikaru and Tamao are expecting us for tea." Jaden told Yubel, and with that the two headed back towards the schools.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I've had the end of this duel pictured since the very beginning of this story. It's because of that I've had to edit this duel a little as I wrote these chapters. Originally Leviathan Omega had a life point cost to activate its effect instead of a discard cost. But after I realized that I had miscalculated some of the changes in Tamao's life points over the course of the duel I had to make a change. Otherwise her life points would've hit zero before Neos could attack. A change I made to the chapter itself was Tamao having amnesia after being defeated. That was something I had come up with during this chapter, and it just seemed to fit the course of events.

As I said up top, there's going to be an epilogue to tie up the lose ends, so stay tuned. In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think.


	30. Epilogue

**Author's Note:** Here it is finally. I'm pleased to bring you all the finale of Dark Queen of Miator.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or Strawberry Panic.

* * *

Epilogue

A week had passed since the end of the Astraea Star Cup, and life on the island had more or less returned to normal. Though there were a few changes that had occurred. Because Tamao had been injured in her duel with Jaden and lost a good chunk of her memory she had to step down as student council president. Jane was named student council president in Tamao's place, as she had not been officially been expelled from the Miator Student Council. Meanwhile, Jaden continued to tend to Tamao as she recovered. That particular day Jaden was walking outside carrying a book when he ran into Chikaru and her usual entourage of Kizuna, Remon, and Kagome.

"Hello Jaden." Chikaru greeted. "What's that book you have there?"

"Just something I got from Miator's library for Tamao." Jaden explained. "There weren't a lot of people there today."

"Oh, well if what I've heard is true it's probably because of Mika and Hiyori." Chikaru chuckled. "I heard they were making a bit of 'noise' in one of the private study rooms."

"This is what happens when you suppress things for too long." Yubel commented to Jaden with a wry expression as she appeared.

"Well, I guess that means those two are doing well." Jaden pointed out. "How're things on the student council?"

"Actually it's been running the smoothest it's ever been." Chiakru answered. "Jane is way more cooperative than Miyuki and Tamao ever were. I guess that's because Jane is so shy. She's a really nice girl though, hard to believe she was once the most feared member of the Four Witches."

"No kidding." Jaden agreed. "Well, I better get going. Tamao is probably wondering where I am by now."

"Okay, we'll see you later then." Chikaru replied before Jaden headed off. Moments after leaving Chikaru and her little gang, Jaden glanced and saw Jane and Tomoyo under a nearby tree making out.

"Those two seem to be doing well too." Yubel observed.

"Yeah, we should probably leave before they see us." Jaden told her.

Jaden continued on to where Tamao was waiting until he saw someone else standing in a nearby clearing. It was a woman with shoulder-length very dark-blue hair wearing a short-sleeved black dress with a long skirt. Jaden recognized the young woman as the former president of the Miator Student Council, Miyuki Rokujo, and he was at the very least surprised to see her on the island.

"I didn't expect to see you here." Jaden called as he walked over, getting Miyuki's attention.

"I'm surprised to see you here as well Mr. Yuki." Miyuki responded with her usual stern expression. "I take it you're not exactly happy to see me."

"Not really, considering you helped resurrect an ancient demon the last time I was here." Jaden reminded her. "Not to mention you caused that mess with Nagisa and Tamao."

"I don't blame you for disliking me for that, and I have done what I could to try and make up for it." Miyuki replied. "But everything I did then I did for Shizuma. You see the fact is I was in love with Shizuma, and I guess that was the main reason why I never disapproved of her relationships with Kaori and Nagisa."

"Oh there's a shocker." Yubel said sarcastically with her arms crossed.

"Okay, but that doesn't explain why you're back here on the island." Jaden pointed out to Miyuki.

"I'm here to try and find new strength." Miyuki revealed. "My career as a pro duelist is not going well at the moment. For awhile I was doing fine, but a few days ago I participated in a special duel…"

* * *

_Five days before in Domino City Stadium, Miyuki was dueling a man with brown hair and piercing blue eyes wearing a white suit with a blue tie. Miyuki's side of the field was empty. While on the other side of the field Miyuki's opponent had a large white dragon with a pair of massive wings and three heads. The eyes on all three of its heads were blue._

_"Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, finish this duel now!" Miyuki's opponent commanded. "Neutron Blast!"_

_The dragon reared back all three of its heads, and from all three it breathed out a destructive blast of white electrical energy. Miyuki fell to her knees after the attack. Her life points had fallen to zero._

_"And the winner of the duel is… Seto Kaiba!" the MC of the duel announced._

_The crowd cheered as Kaiba walked over to a completely defeated Miyuki. He looked down on her with his cold blue eyes._

_"How pathetic." Kaiba said with an arrogant sneer. "You're not the first duelist who graduated from Miator I've run across. There are a few who I consider decent duelists, but like you many of them are just caged birds. Those who simply bow to the expectations of others can never defeat someone like me who has carved his destiny with his own hands."_

_With that, Kaiba walked off the stage. It was quite some time before Miyuki had gotten back to her feet._

* * *

"…Kaiba was right about one thing, all my life I've done what my family has expected of me, even when I had decided to become a duelist." Miyuki continued. "And when I came to Miator I did what the academy expected of me. Not once have I done anything for myself, and thinking about that has made me realize how weak I am. So I came back to this island to try and become strong. But what I would like to know is why you're here Mr. Yuki. As far as I know the Astraea Star Cup ended a week ago."

"I'm here to take care of Tamao." Jaden revealed.

"What do you mean?" Miyuki asked.

"It's a long story." Jaden began, and with that he began to tell Miyuki everything that happened during the tournament and about the Orichalcos.

"I see…" Miyuki said with a look of shock. "Were it not for what happened with the Wicked Gods I would not believe your story, but as it is…. How is Tamao doing?"

"She still doesn't remember anything from the last two years, but other than that she seems fine." Jaden told her.

"I can't help but feel that most of this is my fault." Miyuki said sadly. "I tried pushing her and Nagisa together, knowing full well that Nagisa did not return Tamao's feelings. I… I would like to see Tamao."

"…Okay, c'mon." Jaden agreed after a moment.

Moments later Jaden and Miyuki came to the top of a hill overlooking the ocean. Atop that hill was Tamao in a wheelchair wearing a powder blue robe. A bandage was around her head and her left hand was wrapped in a cast due to broken bones. Tamao looked back and it could be seen that her eyes had returned to their original blue.

"There you are Jaden." Tamao said with a warm smile. "You were gone so long I was starting to worry."

"Sorry, I ended up stopping to talk to a few people." Jaden explained. "In fact, someone is here to see you."

"Really? Who?" Tamao asked with a quizzical expression. Jaden stepped out of the way so Tamao could see Miyuki. "Oh! President Miyuki. I wasn't expecting to see you."

"I'm not the student council president of Miator anymore Tamao." Miyuki reminded her with a warm smile.

"That's right, they told me you graduated." Tamao recalled with a look of embarrassment. "I really forgot about a lot after my accident."

"It's understandable." Miyuki said after walking up to Tamao and kneeling down so they were both at eye level. "It's going to take time for you to recover."

"You're right. So… what're you doing here?" Tamao asked.

"It's a long story." Miyuki answered. "But since I'm here I think I'll take over for Mr. Yuki in caring for you assuming he's okay with it. I'm sure he's been wanting to get back on the road."

"Let her take care of Tamao." Yubel cut in before Jaden could say anything. "It is about time we got going. Plus this might be the best thing for both of them."

"What do you mean?" Jaden whispered.

"When you think about it, those two are kind of alike." Yubel pointed out. "They're both sort of caged birds, and they were both in love with people they never had a chance with. Who knows? It might turn into something."

"…Okay Miyuki, I'll leave Tamao in your hands." Jaden finally agreed with a smile.

"I'll make sure she's well taken care of." Miyuki assured him.

"So does that mean you're leaving Jaden?" Tamao asked.

"Yeah, but I'm sure we'll run into each other again." Jaden assured her. "We'll always be friends Tamao, no matter how far apart we are."

"Then I guess I'll see you later." Tamao replied with a smile. And with that Jaden gave Tamao his trademark victory pose before walking off to make travel arrangements. His second visit to Astraea Island had come to an end.

FIN

* * *

**Author's Note:** I always felt a little bad for Miyuki and Tamao at the end of Strawberry Panic, and I like the idea of them as a couple. In fact the first Strawberry Panic oneshot I ever did was of Miyuki and Tamao getting together. Well, it's been a long ride but at last I can mark this story as complete. This has been one of the longest stories I've ever done, mainly because I've put it on hold a couple of times. But it's been a fun ride.

I know that Yu-Gi-Oh! GX and Strawberry Panic is an odd crossover. But I'm sort of an odd guy, and when I get an idea that I really like I run with it if I can. I hope that this and Strawberry Crisis are stories that have been fun for Yu-Gi-Oh! and Strawberry Panic fans alike. I'm not sure if I'll do another one of these crossovers though. I did have an idea for one but it got scrapped. Though today I did come up with an idea for another crossover story I may do.

I will be doing a few Strawberry Panic stories in the future, that much I can say. I also have a few ideas for some GX stories, one of them a 5D's crossover, though I'm not sure when I'll do those.

Anyway, thank you all for reading, and by all means please review and let me know what you think. ~The Count


End file.
